


Curse of the Spider

by certe_cose



Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: Multi, Plot Divergent, and she does NOT get along with him, another slow burn, childhood friends trope, gonna have some SPICY content but all consensual, omokage is canon here i guess, reader is chrollo's lil sis, trouble trio x reader
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-16
Updated: 2021-02-24
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:08:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 26,694
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25319572
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/certe_cose/pseuds/certe_cose
Summary: Ever since you and your brother parted ways and you left Meteor City, you had been accustomed to the life of a thief. After a mistake in Zaban City leaves you broke and at rock bottom, though, you decide there is only one day to redeem yourself - rob the York New City auction for the rare and elusive book, "Monochopsis". You just didn't know the Phantom Troupe had the same exact plan in mind.
Relationships: Feitan (Hunter X Hunter)/Reader, Feitan/Phinks/Shalnark (Hunter x Hunter), Phinks (Hunter x Hunter)/Reader, Shalnark (Hunter X Hunter)/Reader
Comments: 39
Kudos: 364





	1. Starting From the Bottom

" _Stolen last night from the Zaban City Annual Gala was the Ring of Emperors, said to be passed down the royal family for ages--"_

Turning off the T.V. in disinterest, you rolled over on your dingy hotel bed, holding your hand up above only to admire the gaudy ring on your finger. It certainly wasn't your style - the band was a blinding gold, and the gems, while dazzling by themselves, all seemed to clash horrifically together in a cacophony of blues, reds, greens, and silvers.

The 'Ring of Emperors', they had called it? You had seen children's jewelry in the _dollar store_ more appealing than this junk. However... It certainly didn't change the obscenely high price tag on it.

Grinning to yourself, you rolled back over onto your stomach, pulling your phone out of your pocket with little effort and unlocking it. Having left off on the news tab, your grin became wry at the first article that popped out at you.

_Shadow Thief Strikes Again - Ring of Emperors Stolen At 47th Annual Zaban City Gala._

Seriously? Did they _have_ to call you Shadow Thief? They couldn't even try to make it a tad bit more interesting?

Exiting out of the tab, you opened up one of the black market tabs you had, looking at the forums about the ring. As expected, people were freaking out about it. Good.

You were going to get a hefty price for this.

Hands in your pockets as you strolled down the lively city, you couldn't help but be disgruntled, muttering under your breath. "That stupid, godforsaken ring is worth way more than this guy is offering. If his information is useless, I am literally going to kill him."

You had found a mysterious buyer, one who had offered you a billion jenny and some "valuable" information. Sure, it was a lot, but worth the price of such a coveted and one of a kind ring? You think not. However, you didn't want to stick in Zaban City for long, and were desperate to get this ring off your hands. Wanted posters of _you_ already littered the city, not like anybody would recognize you. Hell, law enforcement still believed you were a guy. You weren't about to try and prove them different, and your thieving outfit made sure to obscure all features. Did they _really_ expect you to waltz around dressed like that during the day?

Seeing a seedy bar, creatively named _Zaban Pub_ , you let yourself in. He said he would be sitting at the end of the bar with a martini, and sure enough your eyes landed on a blond sipping a martini casually at the end of the bar top. For such a shady place, he certainly stood out in a horrendous, brown striped suit. It wasn't even pinstripes, just thick stripes of alternating light and dark browns. Talk about conspicuous.

Strolling up in a leisure manner, you sat next to him. You had told him over messages that you would order a soda so he knew it was you, and you did exactly that, ordering your favorite soda. He didn't glance over at all, but you saw his lips curve upwards in amusement.

"You certainly weren't what I was expecting."

His voice was smooth as honey, but poisonous - he didn't seem like the type of person you could trust at all. A snake. Staring down at your soda, you scoffed.

"Neither were you. Are you _trying_ to stand out?"

He said nothing, instead finishing his martini. "Do you have it?"

You weren't stupid. You knew full well what he was talking about, and stirred the soda with your straw listlessly. "Money first, then the goods, then information."

He pulled out his phone - he had your information already, and sure enough you felt your phone buzz in your pocket. You didn't need to take your phone out to double-check as he showed you the confirmation screen of the bank transfer. Nodding once, you pulled a small box out that nestled the ring safely, sliding it over to him. He peeked inside, humming in acknowledgement before pocketing it.

"Well?"

You couldn't help but be impatient to get out of here, and you could swear you saw his shoulders shake silently in mirth from your peripherals.

"The York New City auction in September. There will be an ancient book there, said to have coordinates encoded into it that lead to a treasure worth more than anything in the world, including the Emerald Claws, said to be one of the worlds most beautiful seven colors."

This _did_ peak your interest, although you tried to remain aloof. "And the name?"

" _Monochopsis._ "

A strange name, but it was enough. Finishing your own drink, you nodded. "Thanks for your business." You had just started to stand up, but something felt amiss. You couldn't sense anything strange, but... Nonetheless, your intuition was screaming at you. In an instant, you dropped to the ground on instinct, something whizzing past your head. You looked up to see a sword sticking out of the wood just inches above your head, and you ducked around it and turned around.

"You set me up, you dirty rat!"

The blond stood up, grinning with his hands raised. "I would _never_."

The other attacker, a tall man with short red hair in a top knot, snorted. "I'll take it from here. This little girl will be nothing." You could have sworn you saw the blond's eyes twinkle in amusement, but he nodded, stepping over a fallen stool.

"The Hunter Association thanks you, Dimka."

The _Hunter Association_? Well, shit.

Watching in irritation as the blond had taken his leave, leaving you alone with this Dimka, you took a deep breath. "You've got the wrong person."

You remained calm, thanks to years of experience, and Dimka snorted. "I doubt it. Tell me where the Shadow Thief is and maybe you'll survive today."

His words were enough to make you pause for a moment, your face growing still. Was he for real? He didn't think you were the Shadow Thief? You weren't sure if you should be relieved or insulted, and now that left you at a standstill. If he saw your _nen_ abilities, he would know that you are actually the "Shadow Thief" and would reveal your identity to the world. You doubted, though, you could escape without _nen,_ leaving you in an annoying predicament.

Poor Dimka here was going to have to die.

Feigning resignation, you held your hands up, easily acting scared and complacent. Your [e/c] eyes teared up, and you even added a little sniffle. "I-I'm just doing what he told me!" You said, voice bordering hysteria. You saw Dimka's black eyes soften a bit, and you struggled to keep up the facade. Seriously, this guy was a professional hunter and already falling for your theatrics? _Please_.

Wiping at your eyes, you continued. "He thr-threatened my mom. She's sick, and I couldn't risk it."

If there was an award for on-the-fly lying, you would definitely have won it. Meanwhile, through tears, you had noticed Dimka had another sword, a standard wakizashi. So he was a dual swordsman, with one of his swords behind you. And he knew _nen_ , he had used _zetsu_ earlier, but what was his _hatsu_?

Without him noticing as you continued to talk about how the Shadow Thief was hiding out with your mother as a hostage ( _hah!_ ), you started to send out your own _nen_. With him using _zetsu_ , he wouldn't be able to use _gyo_ to see your trick until it was already done, bending and warping your own shadow as it slowly started to make its way towards him, elongating into a thin spike. You were almost there before he looked down, seeing the long line of black. A seasoned hunter would have jumped back immediately, on guard, but it was clear this guy was a rookie as he just stared down in confusion.

"Wait, what--"

God, this guy was _stupid_ , with a capital 'S'. You gave him no time to finish his question as the shadow spike solidified and shot upwards, spearing him straight through his throat and out the back of his neck. Even from here, you could feel a splatter of wet on your cheek. Great. Now you were going to walk out of here looking like a prime murder suspect.

Making sure Dimka was dead, your shadow reverted back to normal and walked out of the pub, squinting as sunlight assaulted your eyes. You raised up a hand to shield them, and just as you did that you felt your phone buzz, prompting you to bring it out of your pocket; only to let out a cry of rage, seeing the notification.

_Bank account *******0606 suspended, authorized by Hunters' Association._

"You've got to be shitting me!"

Ignoring the concerned looks of passerby on the streets, you threw your phone viciously at the ground, not at all satisfied as glass flew out of the screen and across the pavement. It was necessary - the Hunters' Association had the resources to find your phone and track it. That was not something you were going to risk.

Still... No money, no phone, and only the few belongings you had in your tiny backpack. You were back all the way at square one because of that dirty rat that had lured you into a set-up. What could you even do now? Going back to your hotel to grab the rest of your belongings was way too risky; an amateur move.

_The York New City auction in September. There will be an ancient book there, said to have coordinates encoded into it that lead to a treasure worth more than anything in the world, including the Emerald Claws, said to be one of the worlds most beautiful seven colors._

You weren't sure if that fashion-disaster, good-for-nothing asshole was telling the truth or not, but... Well, no longer did you have anything to lose.

God, this better not be a waste of time.

" _Monochopsis_ , huh?"

Smiling ruefully, you hailed a taxi to take you to the nearest port city - no intent to pay the poor bastard. Looks like you would be heading to the United States of Saherta.


	2. A Shitty Thief

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Having a new goal, you begin to look for funds and transportation to the United States of Saherta.

"--AND NEVER USE THIS TAXI SERVICE AGAIN!"

Grinning as you waved 'goodbye' to a _very_ angry taxi driver, you watched him speed off for a moment. You couldn't suppress the snort that left you when he almost hit a pedestrian, the business man yelling obscenities after the yellow cab. Well, that was none of your business anymore - it's not like it was _your_ fault that your bank account got frozen.

Stupid Hunters' Association.

There was no use crying over spilled milk, you supposed. You already had a new goal in mind, you just needed to get across the ocean to the United States of Saherta and to the York New Auction. It was the beginning of July, so two months should be good enough time, right?

Crossing over was easier said than done, though, when you realized you had no fare to board the boat.

 _I can't just kill them, there's no way I can drive a boat. There's gotta be some sucker around here who will be easy enough to steal from_. As strange as it was considering your given profession, you hated stealing from just anybody. There were plenty of others trying to survive - you considered yourself more of some kind of Robin Hood, stealing from the rich and _occasionally_ giving it back to the poor. Well, mostly the money you stole was used to fund your erratic and adventurous lifestyle.

To each their own, right?

Seeing a guy arguing angrily on the phone, dressed ritzy and complaining about some last-minute business meeting, you felt your lips curl upwards. _Bingo_. With your hands in your pockets, and drawing up your own _nen_ , you casually walked past the guy, bumping shoulders with him and swiftly apologizing after. Meanwhile, while he was focused on your hands and face, you had activated your _nen_ ability, your shadow slipping the wallet from his pocket to yours with him none the wiser.

Walking around the corner of the building so he didn't see you pull out the wallet, you leaned up against the building, quickly leafing through. As hoping, he had a thick money clip with bills of jenny. Certainly enough to catch you a trip to Saherta and a few good meals and nights at a hotel.

Giggling as you heard him start to yell, realizing his wallet was gone, you tossed it into an alley before heading back towards the ship cheerily, handing over the needed amount to take you overseas.

A piece of cake.

You still had a little bit until the ship left port, and so you decided now was as good a time as ever to take inventory. With the ship resembling a pirate ship, you climbed up to the forecastle deck. Not only was there nobody up there, but it gave you better leverage to look down on all of the passengers, both qualities important to you.

Taking off your backpack, you leaned up against the rail, setting the backpack between your legs as you began to take everything out.

You had suspected you didn't have a lot, but you hadn't realized just how much you had left in your hotel room in a haste to leave Zaban City until now. You grimaced.

Thankfully, your black cloak, tattered at the ends, was folded neatly at the bottom. That was what you often wore to conceal your identity and, unintentionally, gender. It covered your face perfectly and was all black, helping you blend into the night, not to mention it just looked really cool. Mysterious. Underneath the cloak were black gloves to pair with your thief outfit. As well as your little disguise, you had a single bag of trail mix with all of the candy already picked out from when you had a sweets craving the other day, a raggedy leather-bound notebook and fountain pen, a couple of spare coins, basic hygiene products and a hair brush, and an extra pair of socks and underwear.

Honestly, your inventory was pretty depressing.

Sorting everything back in there save for the few coins which you pocketed, and putting the remaining wad of cash you had stolen into a hidden pocket on the inside, you zipped your bag back up and banged your head on the wooden railing behind you a couple of times. You had left your home of Meteor City with more than this. Meteor City! This was an all new low for you.

Deep breaths. You weren't going to let a set back like this ruin your life. Taking the trail mix out and bitterly munching on it, wishing there were at least a few M&Ms left, you just sat and soaked up the sun for a moment. Despite the lack of clouds, the beating rays weren't unbearable. On the contrary, it was soothing and relaxing, enough to almost lull you into a deep sleep if you didn't have your mouth currently filled with food.

You were just about done with your snack when you felt stronger presences board the ship. Two, in fact. Sitting straight, you waited a moment, trying to feel them out before letting your curiosity get the better of you as you stood up and leaned over the rail, looking over the main deck. In the time that you had been zoning out and eating, more and more people had boarded the ship. While a lot of them looked hardened and scruffy, it didn't take a genius to know they were just ordinary people with no knowledge of _nen_. You wouldn't even be surprised if they didn't even have proper fighting experience save for drunken fist fights on the streets at three in the morning.

No, none of _these_ guys were the strong presences you felt. Skimming through the crowd, you finally saw two individuals that stood out. Even without seeing their _ren_ , they were powerful, extremely so. The two stood side-by-side, conversing lightly. The shorter one had light blond, almost yellow hair and a lavender outfit that made your more muted sensibilities cringe at the choice in fashion. The guy next to him, taller by at _least_ a foot but equally as lanky with hidden muscles, had more of a caramel-colored hair and a mean look on his face. Talk about Resting Bitch Face Syndrome. His fashion choices weren't much better, a green, red, and white tracksuit that made you wonder if those two had taken fashion advice from your little hunter friend back in Zaban City.

What caught your eye, though, was the gaudy, Egyptian-style necklace that hung around the taller man's neck. You couldn't help but whistle. Even from here, you could tell by the glint of the jewels embedded into it that that necklace was 100% genuine.

As if sensing your presence at the same time, both men looked over and up at you sharply, meeting your gaze. Not one to back down, and not wanting to seem neither cowed nor suspicious, you grinned and flashed the two a peace sign.

Before any of you could do anything else, an announcement echoed over the decks of the ship, signalling that the boat was leaving port. Taking your eyes off the two, you scanned the crowd one more time to see if anybody else caught your eye. You had almost been ready to turn away before an unassuming man caught your attention. He was entirely plain looking, black hair and dark eyes, skinny and almost fragile looking. He blended in perfectly, almost invisible to the eye.

And that was probably why he was getting away with stealing other people's belongings. If you had blinked, you would have missed it, but as a fellow thief you could tell the usual tricks of those who stole without _nen_. Watching as he deftly took somebody's watch off their wrist, with the guy being none the wiser, you shook your head wryly.

This was certainly going to be an interesting trip, that's for sure.

"Okay, which one of you assholes stole my phone?!"

Hearing the angry yells come from below, you blinked blearily, trying to wake up. How long had you been napping? Judging by the sun, about to set, it had to have been almost six hours, especially since the boat left just after noon. That only meant about 12 more hours of traveling by seaside, if your assumption was correct.

Yawning, you stretched your limbs out, your shoulders giving a satisfying _pop_ as you slowly and groggily stood up. You still had all of your stuff with you. While normally you wouldn't have allowed yourself to fall asleep, you were still alone up on the forecastle deck, and the petty thief from before wouldn't have been able to get under your radar. Still, you double-checked your belongings to make sure. Just in case.

Reassuring that you had all of your stuff, you walked over and leaned over the railing to see a group of people arguing. Apparently, Mr. Amateur Thief had been picking a _lot_ of pockets, as almost everybody was missing something. You saw him in the crowd, pretending to argue with the rest of them, but you knew better.

He was just blending in to stay safe.

You _could_ have jumped down and solved the issue, but this was prime-time entertainment for you. Too bad you didn't have popcorn. Grinning in amusement, you watched, entertained, as two men started to sloppily fist fight. Both were clearly drunk, their punches missing more often than not. Off to the side were the other two guys from earlier, the walking fashion catastrophes. They seemed unbothered by the chaos, talking among themselves.

You noticed a second before the tall one did, your eyebrows quirking upwards at the lack of gold around his neck. His companion seemed to casually have pointed out - you weren't sure, you couldn't hear them over the yelling and at your distance - but then the tracksuit guy looked down and anger engulfed him immediately.

Upon realizing his necklace was missing, you felt his aura spike, a chill running down your spine. He was legitimately ready to murder everybody aboard the ship, you realized, stiffening immediately. Yeah, no more sitting back, you were _not_ about to pay for somebody else's idiocy.

Putting your fingers into your mouth, you let out a high-pitched whistle, getting everybody to effectively shut up before you jumped down, landing nimbly on your feet.

"Will you all chill out for a moment?"

Angry grumbles resounded throughout the crowd at your blunt words, but you ignored them, pushing through until you got to the unassuming guy from before, harshly gripping his arm. It wasn't enough to break it, but it would certainly leave a bruise in the morning. Ignoring the wince, you met his gaze evenly.

"What's your name."

It wasn't a question, and he hastily answered you. "I-It's Raji Fujigari." A Japponese name. No wonder why he was a good thief, the fighting style over in Jappon focused more on stealth than anything else, so if he learned over there, it made sense why he was so good at it.

"Well, _Raji_ , why don't you fess up and give everybody their belongings back before you get us all killed?"

His eyes darted behind you, undoubtedly landing on the two angry _nen_ users behind you. He gulped, his Adam's apple bobbing out of fear. By now, everybody should have been able to sense the stifling atmosphere, although not everybody was smart enough to realize what that probably meant.

He didn't respond right away, and you wondered if he was going to play dumb, but then he slumped in your grip. Spineless coward.

"I-In my knap - knapsack."

You were a bit harsh as you took the knapsack and shoved him to the ground. Paying no attention to Raji, who was now holding his arm delicately, you turned the cloth bag upside down, dumping out the contents. Wristwatches, wallets, phones, and other miscellaneous items spilled out, scattering across the deck. Cries of outrage could be heard, and you casually picked up the Egyptian necklace, looking back.

"Yo, tracksuit."

You tossed the necklace to him which he caught immediately. Shoving your hands into your pockets, you gave him a crooked smile. "Next time, maybe use your non-existent brain before you start plotting everybody's murder." You were glad to see his own face morph into anger as you jumped back up to the forecastle deck. You could have taken that as your chance to steal something yourself, but you didn't want to further the hostility.

Hey, even you knew when to tap out.

Hearing the other passengers and crew members tie up Raji to hand him over to the authorities, you finally decided it was safe enough to go back to resting, using your backpack as a pillow as you easily fell asleep beneath the stars, the swaying of the boat gently putting you to sleep.


	3. Brother's Stupid Boy Band

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Why is your luck the worst? You run into two people you'd rather NOT run into.

Immediately, when you woke up that next morning, you knew something was wrong. As a thief, you were great at guessing the weight of objects - after all, often times you had to replace one object with another, and exact weight was crucial in times like those. This was why, when you woke up and your backpack felt lighter and softer beneath your head, that you knew something was amiss.

It's not like you had much to miss anyways, but the fact that somebody had the audacity to steal from you set you off, not to mention you weren't even aware. Bolting into a sitting position, you instantly dove into your bag. Weirdly enough, your money was still there, even though the secret pocket had been unzipped. What _was_ missing, infuriatingly and confusingly enough, was your leather-bound journal.

The boat hadn't gotten to port yet; you hadn't slept that long. That, thankfully, worked in your favor, because that meant the culprit was still onboard. Immediately, you ruled out Raji - he was still tied to the main mast, passed out with his entire face swollen from the beat down he had received last night. Poor bastard. You also ruled out the other passengers. To get past you, they would have needed _zetsu_ , and nobody here was capable of _nen_.

Nobody, that was, except for the two blonds that had caught your eye yesterday.

Gritting your teeth, and securing your bag on your back, you hopped down from the forecastle deck. Those two weren't on the main deck, and so you stormed into the first floor of the hold. A few people were milling around, going in and out of the galley as the smell of fresh food wafted through the doorway, but despite the grumbling of your stomach, it went completely ignored by you. Neither were using _zetsu_ to hide their presences right now.

It was as if they _wanted_ to be found. 

Going down past the orlop deck, you finally made it to the cargo hold, where your two perpetrators were. There was a stiffened and tense crew member guarding the stairs - you had been prepared to shove him aside, but upon seeing you he move for you in robotic movements. You weren't blind enough to miss the cute, bat-shaped needle sticking out of the side of his neck.

Great, one of the men's _nen_ abilities was a manipulator.

In hindsight, you should have been more cautious, but anger at your missing journal blinded you. Without any hesitation, you had stormed into the cargo hold. Unsurprisingly, it was only those two - more likely than not, that crew member was going to prevent anybody else from barging in on whatever the hell was going to happen.

While the room was tense, you didn't sense hostility from either men - that didn't stop your own irritation, though, as [e/c] eyes zeroed in on the brown leather book in the taller man's hands. The short one was on his phone, lounging casually as he played on the device. He was definitely the manipulator.

"What are you guys playing at? Just who the hell are you?"

Your tone was purposely antagonistic, but neither seemed to be offended by your words or tone. The blond on the phone didn't even look up or acknowledge you at all, and the one holding your book just grinned arrogantly.

A part of you wanted to kick their asses. The other part of you didn't think you stood a chance.

"[Y/n]," the taller male said, opening the book. "We had our suspicions on who you were, but this book confirms it."

The other blond piped up, not even moving his blue gaze from his phone. He had a friendly and amused smile on his face as he spoke. "You didn't believe me at all, Phinks."

The tall guy - Phinks - glared over at his companion. "But I listened in the end!"

You did not have time to waste on them arguing, and said as much. "Get to the point. I don't want to listen to your couple's quarrel!"

Phinks turned his anger onto you. "Listen here, you brat, I'll--"

His companion cut him off, finally turning his gaze to you. "You're from Meteor City."

It wasn't a question, but a statement. They both knew the answer, especially if they read your journal, and you debated how to respond. Shifting onto your other foot, you looked back and forth between them. Phinks was clearly easily angered, probably an enhancer or emitter, but there was no ill intent. _Yet_. You didn't let that lower your guard at all.

"Yes," you admitted after a moment. "Who sent you? The Hunter Association?"

You were probably going to have to kill them like Dimka. Unlike Dimka, though, these two were insanely strong. The Hunter Association had clearly learned from their past mistake, and your eyes darted around, taking in all of the shadows. At the very least, you were at an advantage. Did they know this? Slowly, you started to ready your _hatsu_ , fully prepared to disappear and make an escape, but before you could make a move, the blond had burst into amused laughter.

"The Hunter Association?" He parroted back at you. "No. We're friends of a friend, you could say."

You faltered, earlier aggression melting into pure confusion. "Friends... of a friend? The hell?"

Phinks tossed the book back to you, and your hand shot up on reflex, easily catching it. 'Tossed' was one way to put it - Phinks had all but chucked the book at you. You were strong, but the force was enough to make your wrist feel sore, even with using _ko_ to protect your precious arm from breaking under the pressure. At your successful catch, Phinks grinned again.

"Well, friends of a family member."

Oh, you didn't like the sound of that. You only had one known family member, and you were currently _very_ pissed at him despite the many years it had been.

You didn't need to ask who to confirm, quickly putting the pieces together. Strong _nen_ users, unsurprised of your Meteor City origins, and knowing a family member?

Shit.

You were fast. Spinning around, you darted towards the door, and just as fast, Phinks had appeared in front of you. You didn't falter, even as an announcement rang through the ship, announcing they had just docked. Activating your _hatsu_ , you slipped into the shadow underneath Phinks. He gave a startled yell, and you only reappeared, growing out of the shadows once you were past the manipulator's guard and up the stairs.

Not looking back, you shot through the decks, not even bothering with the ramp once you got to the main deck. Jumping off the ship and onto gray cobblestone, you grit your teeth as you harshly hit the ground. Once again, you melted into the shadows, concealing your presence as Phinks and his companion both appeared. Realizing they had lost you, Phinks let out a slew of curses, rage emanating off him dangerously.

For a minute, the two stuck around, but once they truly comprehended the fact they couldn't track you, they finally left. Phinks' friend, who you never got the name of, even looked _disappointed_.

You held your breath, only relaxing after they were completely gone.

Staying in the shadows, you darted between other people's shadows, everything blended in enough together until you made it to an alley and reappeared, rising up out of the ground. Wiping sweat off your brow, you reached into your back pocket, pulling out one of your coins.

Earlier, when you had first melted into the shadows underneath Phinks, you had made a quick switch of your pocket contents. Emptying one of the coins from your pockets, you had stolen a coin of his. It could have been useless, but you had done it to confirm your own suspicion.

Looking at the coin, your worst fears were confirmed as you recognized the spider on one side. On the other side was a web - it was a seemingly cool, custom made coin. To anybody else, it'd seem like a cute little trinket, because few knew what it was actually for, and who exactly used it.

Putting the coin back in your pocket, you ran a hand through your hair in exasperation, leaning against the wall behind you wearily.

That was too close of a call.

_The Phantom Troupe... In this giant world, I had the unfortunate luck to run into members of my brother's stupid boy band._

And, even more unfortunately, you had a strong feeling on where they were all meeting up at.


	4. Annoying Children

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wanting the rest of your trip to go in peace, you instead run into two annoying kids who don't want to leave you alone.

Even though you were entirely certain that you had lost the two Troupe members, you stayed anxious and jumpy up until you managed to get on a blimp straight to York New City. It would be a long-ass flight with a bunch of stops along the way, but it was better than hopping between taxis and cities.

Using the rest of your stolen money to buy the ticket, you sat down by a window, finally allowing yourself to relax as you slumped in your seat. It hadn't even been a full day since you had gotten off the ship, but it had felt like years already. You were exhausted, and looking forward to spend the rest of your flight relaxing. At least, that was what was _planned_ until two younger voices piped up loudly.

"Aww, the flight's booked! We'll probably have to sit next to somebody else!"

Please, no.

"There're only a couple seats left, and that girl over there looks really lame."

God, why?

"Excuse me, miss, can we sit here?"

Suppressing a groan and feeling aggravation spike through you, you opened your eyes, fully ready to tell the two kids to screw off, but stopped as you met the earnest brown eyes of the kid who spoke. Immediately, your heart melted. This kid was literal sunshine and you wanted to protect him.

"Um, of course!"

Gesturing to the two seats across from you, you couldn't help but smile brightly at the two kids. "I'm [Y/n]!"

Grinning in return at your own friendliness, the ball of sunshine introduced himself. "I'm Gon, and this is Killua!"

The white haired kid with blue eyes, Killua, was affronted. "Oi, don't tell this old hag our names!"

" _Excuse me?_ "

Gon laughed sheepishly, and you had to remind yourself that this was just a kid and you couldn't just yeet him out of the airship window as much as you wanted to right now.

But hoo boy were you tempted.

"Thank you again for letting us sit here! The rest of the seats were already taken!" Gon was polite, and you shrugged as if to tell him it was no big deal - since it was him, it _was_ no big deal.

Shifting in your seat so you could lean back again, you hummed. "Of course! It's no problem. I'm going to nap, but if you two kids need anything, let me know." At the risk of sounding like an overly concerned mother, you closed your eyes again, able to drift into sleep quickly, tuning Gon and Killua's conversation out with ease as you fell asleep.

You weren't certain how long you had been asleep, and still didn't have a phone to check the time, but when you next woke up the sky outside the window was dark. Across from you, Gon was snoring quietly, and next to him, Killua was... Not asleep. He was staring at you intently, suspicion clear all over his face. You scrunched up your nose. What was _his_ problem?

"You snore."

You felt the vein in your forehead throb, the urge to strangle the cheeky brat stronger than ever. That was definitely not why he had been staring, but the insult was enough to distract you for a moment as you gave him a strained smile. "Are you always this charming, brat?" Killua stuck his tongue out childishly at you.

_He is a CHILD. You are seriously going to let a child rile you up like this?_

Scolding yourself, you took a deep breath, rolling your eyes at his antics. Pulling out your book, and resisting the urge to beat the shit out of Killua, you grabbed your pen and began to write, documenting everything that had happened, from the boat ride to where you were currently. With a majority of the aircraft sleeping, it was easy to hear the _scritch-scratch_ of your pen on tea-stained paper. Without looking up, you could still sense Killua's gaze on you - you tried to ignore it, but it was hard.

After a few moments of silence, you spoke, not looking up from what you were currently writing (your escape from Phinks and his friend). "I'm not going to attack you guys," you said lowly.

Killua shifted in his seat. "You were oozing blood lust earlier." Had you? You were annoyed, sure, but you hadn't realized you had been oozing actual bloodlust. In your defense, you had wanted to be left alone and was exhausted up until you met these two.

You genuinely apologized, finishing up your entry before closing the journal shut. "It's been a long day, kid. Sorry about that."

Scoffing, Killua crossed his arms. "Alright then, _old hag_."

You grit your teeth again. Cheeky brat.

Not wanting to dignify that insult with any sort of response, you put your journal away. You didn't have a phone to mess around on, and with nothing else to do to pass the time, you had decided you might as well just go back to sleep. You certainly had some time to spare, anyways.

Even with your eyes closed, you could feel the scrutinizing gaze of Killua, and you shifted, doing your best to ignore it. Eventually, you did, falling into a light slumber once again. You weren't sure how long you had slept, but you awoke to hushed whispers to the two kids across from you.

"--but what if the Troupe isn't there?"

Okay, now _this_ was interesting. Not giving any hint that you were still awake, you strained your hearing to listen carefully.

"Hopefully they aren't. My dad said that it took two of our members to kill one Troupe member, and said it wasn't worth it."

These kids were truly, _truly_ stupid. Not even wanting to hear anymore, you let out a loud and exaggerated sigh before opening your eyes, rubbing the sleep out of them. "Maybe if you're going to talk about such a dangerous group, you should wait until there aren't about 50 people around?" Your tone was dry, and both kids seemed to tense up immediately at your words. "You're not thinking about hunting them down, right?"

Killua was first to answer, his words sharp and cold. "That's none of your business, old hag."

You snorted, rolling your eyes. "Fine, I guess you don't want the information I have then." Leaning back into your seat, you pointedly crossed your arms and turned towards the window, ignoring their outburst of surprise.

"Wait, you have information?!"

You inspected your nails in disinterest. "I don't know, after all, it's none of my business...."

"Killua!"

You heard a light smack and jerked your head towards the two kids only to see Gon had bonked Killua on the head, the latter holding his head. You couldn't help the laugh of amusement that left your mouth. These two kids really were something...

Making up your mind, you huffed. "I like you two," you declared, "so I'll give you some information on _one_ condition."

Both kids looked over. You had clearly gotten their attention, and they had immediately gone on guard - especially Killua, who was the one to respond. "How can we take your word?"

"You'll just have to trust me."

The exchanged glances, having some sort of unspoken conversation before they nodded. "What's the condition?" This was from Gon, and you hummed in thought.

"I don't have a phone," you admitted, "so I just need to borrow a phone to look something up."

Gon seemed to ponder over it before nodding. "I don't have a phone, but Killua does!"

"OI, don't just offer up people's stuff!"

Gon laughed sheepishly, and you watched in amusement as Killua huffed and grumbled something under his breath before taking his phone out. He didn't hand it to you yet, though, and you realized they were waiting for the information first. Smart. Grinning, you tried to think of where to start. Related or not, the Phantom Troupe was a nuisance, and you held a personal grudge against your brother. You certainly didn't mind taking him down a notch, and it's not like two _kids_ could take on even the weakest member of the Troupe.

"Where to start...." You weren't going to give away everything, but you could give harmless snippets. "They always travel in pairs of two," you started, tapping your nose in thought. "Except for the leader. He vanishes until the next big job - the only way to find him is during the job, so there's a short window of opportunity." You would know, considering you had once tried searching for him too. What else...

"Oh, one of the members was replaced a while ago. Number four, I think." This one you weren't _entirely_ positive on, but figured knowledge is power nonetheless.

Killua was suspicious - no surprise there, honestly. "How do you know anything about the Phantom Troupe?"

Your answer came quick with no hesitation. "I'm actively avoiding them - _don't even ask_ \- so I've made myself knowledgeable on how they work." You had to interject your own sentence as both boys had opened their mouths to as why you were avoiding the Troupe. Thankfully, they didn't pursue it. "However... The two of you aren't anywhere near the level to even stand five seconds against a Troupe member. I can tell you two are strong, but they... They're on another level. I'd let it be."

They exchanged looks again, and it seemed like Gon was about to speak up before deciding not to. Instead, Killua mutely handed over his phone, and you wasted no time going to the internet browser to do some much needed research on the book you needed, _Monochopsis_. You needed as much information as possible - how much it was worth in the auction and what it looked like, specifically. Information on the book was scarce. It seemed that what the Hunter Association guy had said was true, but had remained elusive until only a year ago, when an archaeologist had uncovered the book in ancient ruins in the Republic of Padokea.

With little information to go on, you handed the phone back to Killua, feeling a bit aggravated by the quick dead end. You nodded as thanks to him before settling in. Considering this flight was far from over...

Well, nobody could stop you from napping again, and so that's exactly what you did, wishing to just get to York New already.


	5. 80's Work Out Video

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In York New City, you do what you're best at - thieving. Unfortunately, a familiar face is on your trail.

As soon as the airship had landed, you were off, not even bothering to bid a proper goodbye to the two kids. You had never been on a flight that long before, and it drove you nuts. Never again.

Refreshed from the many naps you took while in the air, you glanced around in awe at everything. You had never been to York New City before, and even from the outskirts could you see the towering buildings. It was a sight to behold, and you gazed out in awe, forgetting your goal for just a moment. Was _this_ what you had been missing out on, having grown up in Meteor City?

Shaking your head once, you had started to head on towards the city - being out in the wastelands of the desert, there weren't any shadows for you to dissolve into to, as you called it, "fast travel", but that was alright. It wasn't too bad of a walk. You'd be a wimp if you died out here.

Thankfully not running into anybody, you made it to the city within a couple of hours, the sun blazing high. The airport was unnecessarily far from the city, but you also realized a bit too late you could have just taken a taxi or a shuttle bus. Oh well, the exercise was always welcomed, you supposed, and besides, you were too wired to get started on your search. _Monochopsis_ was pretty expensive on the market, a problem considering you lacked money, but that wasn't going to stop you.

You were the _Shadow Thief_ (that name was growing on you). You didn't need to have the _money_ for it, because, quite simply, you weren't going to buy it.

You were going to be stealing it.

Yeah, yeah, stealing from the mafia was dangerous, but you were strong enough to spar with your brother on equal grounds. A couple hundred of mafia goons who couldn't even use _nen_ was _nothing_ , and you were already formulating a plan. You just needed to find out what day _Monochopsis_ was being sold, and then you'd sneak into wherever the treasure was being held and yank it right from underneath their grubby noses.

Shoving your hands in your pockets, you strolled through the streets. The auction started tomorrow, so thankfully you had time. First, you needed to find a place to stay. It would be easy to scam some rich creep and kill him off to get his fancy hotel room and money, and you had no qualms about killing some asshole who'd want to take advantage of you. 

Ah, but you were also going to need a phone at some point... Shoot, you definitely needed to make a list of priorities or something. That asshole from the Hunter Association had taken everything from you. Starting from the bottom wasn't new to you, but it was infuriating nonetheless. What would your brother say if he found out that you had been bested by some jerk who looked like a blind preschooler dressed him? You would be endlessly teased, and that was not something you wanted to deal with. You doubted you'd run into your brother here, York New City was enormous after all, but maybe you should also come up with a cover story to save your dignity while you're at it....

"AGH!!!"

Groaning in exasperation, and ignoring all of the strange looks you received in retaliation, you turned sharply on your heels and started to walk to the markets. You'd take only what you needed for now. With your _hatsu_ , it would be like stealing candy from a baby, not to mention you were a professional at stealing in general, even before you developed your _hatsu_. 

You walked up to the first stall, making sure to keep both hands visible as you looked at the phones available. Immediately, the salesperson had started to talk to you, and you feigned interest, nodding along as you reached your _nen_ down into your shadow. With his eyes on you, and nobody any wiser, the shadow had wrapped around a phone box before deftly slipping it into your backpack. The shopkeeper didn't notice as he continued to babble, and you let out an embarrassed laugh, patting your pockets.

"Ah, I must have forgotten my wallet, I'll have to come back to get that phone. Thanks for your help, though!"

Walking away, you suppressed the grin of satisfaction, the thrill of stealing coursing through your veins. Throughout the next few stalls you did the same act - distract the stall owner, keep your hands visible, and use your shadow to steal goods. Nobody had bothered to stop you, and you had left the markets feeling successful at the heaviness you felt in your backpack.

With your little "shopping trip" done, you had started to head down to the financial district of York New City, where all of the ritzy hotels were. A lot of them were mafia owned, but that didn't scare you - as long as you didn't seem suspicious, you'd be alright. However, even with your air of casualty, you soon picked up a trail. Somebody was following you - and they were pretty talented in _zetsu_. You were certain if they were going at it 100%, you wouldn't have been able to sense them. They either wanted you to figure out you were being followed, or they were underestimating you.

Not giving any indication that you noticed you were being followed, you hummed. You had a feeling it was the former - whoever was following you, was testing you. If they wanted to play like that, then fine.

Coming to a stop in front of a particularly tall hotel, you leisurely waltzed in as if you owned the place. Off to the side was a gaggle of people, a strange group of people in suits surrounding a young girl with blue hair. No doubt, they were part of the mafia. You'd have to make sure to avoid them.

Waiting for them all to get in the elevator and leave, you got into the next elevator, wondering if you could draw out your trail. A close capacity fight in an elevator wasn't the _best_ , but you'd manage. Before the doors had closed all the way, a man had stopped them with his foot before getting in. You immediately recognized him, and before you could bolt out of the elevator the doors had closed and he had pressed a button, the elevator slowly starting to ascend.

"It was _you_ who was following me?"

Your voice was incredulous as you looked at the man before you. He was about your height, blond, and still wearing that ridiculous lavender outfit he had donned when you were on the ship, making him look as if he came out of an 80's work-out video. You weren't sure what his name was, just that he was a friend of that Phinks guy, was a part of the Phantom Troupe, and worst of all, knew your secret.

The blond smiled cordially. "Ah, so you noticed! As expected of Danchou's little sister!"

You were tense - he was a manipulator, and usually you'd be at an advantage but you two were pretty close in the elevator. It'd be nothing for him to stick you with one of his bat-shaped needles and control you.

"What do you want?"

You kept your voice even, [e/c] eyes narrowing in distrust, and the blond laughed, raising his hands up. "Ah, don't worry! I just saw you in the market and was curious. You stole a lot, didn't you?"

Staying quiet, you watched warily. What was his game here? What was he planning?

Sensing your clear distrust, the blond continued to speak. "I'm Shalnark. And you're [Y/n] Lucilfer, right?"

The elevator gave a quiet _ding_ , the doors sliding open, and Shalnark hooked his arm into yours, leading you out of the elevator.

"Just [Y/n]. Not Lucilfer." Never Lucilfer, although you didn't say that. You were already extremely tense as Shalnark walked down the hallway with you. Did he know you didn't actually have a hotel room here? Whatever he was planning, you didn't yank your arm away yet, knowing it would be a useless endeavor.

"Just [Y/n], got it." Throughout the entire conversation he did not stop smiling, and you pursed your lips. "Which room is yours?"

You suppressed a groan. "None. I was going to take somebody else's room."

Shalnark's smile grew - for somebody so innocent and angelic looking, he certainly shared the same sinister ideals that the rest of your brother's garage band seemed to hold.

As if he had heard the two of you talking, a sleazy-looking business man left a room, arguing on his phone as he shoved past the two of you, speaking lowly underneath his breath as if he didn't want to be overheard.

Watching him get into the elevator and disappear, you exchanged a look with Shalnark before sighing, heading to the room he had left. Room 1473, on the 14th floor. Shalnark hung back as you approached the door, and you shot him an irritated look as you activated your _hatsu_ , slipping into the shadow cast from the bottom of the door and slipping underneath it and into the room. For a moment, you debated on leaving Shalnark out there, but you had a feeling he'd just break the room door down.

Turning around, you opened the door, and Shalnark gave you a knowing smile, icy blue eyes glinting mischievously as if he had read your thoughts about him.

He followed you into the room, and you closed the door. It was a suite, but what could have been amazing to look at was dashed by the mess Mr. Businessman had left. You'd definitely be calling room service.

Flicking on the lights, you turned to Shalnark, crossing your arms. "Why are you still following me? If you're going to try and take me back to Chrollo, then you're in for an unpleasant surprise."

Shalnark walked over to the window, pulling aside the curtains and looking out of them for a minute before turning back to you, his eyes seeming to pierce straight through. "You don't get along with your brother."

It wasn't a question, more of a statement, and it caused you to scoff. "He left me behind in that godforsaken dump of a city to form a group of _thieves_ and literally committed mass genocide. I don't get along? I fucking hate his guts."

Shalnark's smile didn't die down at your outburst against his group leader. Instead, he just tilted his head to the left slightly, blond strands of hair falling forwards. "You're not upset about him breaking the law," he pointed out, and your angry demeanor gave away slightly. "You're mad he left you for a different group of people. Right?"

It was true, and you _hated_ it. You had stolen and killed for selfish and personal gain yourself - to be mad at your brother would be hypocritical. And yeah, you were more than just 'mad' that he had left you behind to form the Phantom Troupe. Not only had he left you behind, he took with him the other people you grew up with, everybody you had known and cared about. You didn't even know _why_ the embitterment you felt was so maddening, even more so since you didn't have the answers.

You didn't say any of this, though. Shalnark didn't need to know your thoughts, and your silence spoke leagues anyways. Instead, you averted your gaze, glaring at the carpeted floor. At your lack of response, Shalnark chuckled, a clear sound that - irritatingly enough - had your heart aflutter.

 _Curse_ this pretty boy.

"It's okay. I'm not here to question you."

"Then _what the fuck are you doing here._ "

Shalnark started to walk towards you, and you finally looked up, tensing but not moving back. Eventually, he came to a stop and held his hand out in front of him, palm facing up. You stared down at it in confusion.

"What?"

He chuckled again, and you found yourself both loving and intensely hating the sound at the same time. "Your phone. You stole one earlier, right?"

You still weren't catching on, and you blinked owlishly. "What about it...?"

"You can't use it until it's set up, and since you stole it, the shopkeeper wasn't able to do that. I can jailbreak your phone."

You made no move to grab the phone from your backpack, staring at Shalnark suspiciously. His face was friendly, amiable, and you didn't trust it one bit. "Why would you do that? How can I even trust you?"

"You can't really trust me, but who else is going to set that up for you since it's stolen? And I'm doing it because you're Danchou's sister."

He had a pretty fair point. Activating your _hatsu_ , your shadow's hand reached into your backpack, pulling out the phone case for you so you didn't have to let your guard down in front of Shalnark. Your shadow handed him the box before reverting back to normal, and Shalnark's smile widened enough for you to see his teeth before he went over to the desk, shoving off all of Mr. Businessman's belongings in the process. He unboxed the sleek phone first, before pulling out a small chip and inserting it into your phone. You wandered over, watching over his shoulder as your phone seemed to load whatever was on the card.

You had expected it to be a long process, but a couple moments later Shalnark had handed your phone back. "Just keep that card in, and you can use it. It has its own phone number and everything."

You unlocked the phone. Sure enough, it had service, and you opened the contacts only to smile wryly.

"Seriously? You gave me your number?"

Shalnark shrugged, standing up and stepping around you. "If you're in trouble, you can call me."

"I won't be in trouble, I assure you that much." You shook your head, glancing down at the phone before setting it on the desk. "But... Thanks. I guess."

Seriously, how did his cheeks not hurt from smiling so much? He started to walk towards the door, and only when he opened the door did he look back over his shoulder.

"No problem. I'll see you later."

With those somewhat ominous words, he left, the door closing gently behind him in contrast to his bold declaration. Sighing, you sat down on the edge of the king-sized bed, glancing over at the phone that lied flat on the desk.

If you were standing, you would have seen the bat-shaped symbol loading on the screen.


	6. How To Get Away With Murder (And Kidnapping...  And Fraud...  And Identity Theft)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will Ladybug and Chat Noir ever find out each other's true identities? You'll probably never know, considering you can't get a moment of peace, even in your own (stolen) hotel room.

In the now near-spotless room, you lounged lazily on the bed, watching the cartoon that was on as you lazily ate a bag of chips.

"Come _on_ , Marinette, how can you not tell that Adrien and Chat Noir are the same person?!"

Throwing a chip at the television in irritation, a muffled shouting came off to the side from the open closet of your room. Rolling your eyes, you looked over. Earlier, the lecherous business man had come back, and you had wasted no time in jumping him and tying him up, duct-taping his mouth shut in the process, too. You felt like you were being generous - you _could_ have just killed him.

"Dude, I'm watching _Miraculous Ladybug_ ," you complained to him. "If you don't shut up, I'll just kill you. Don't try me."

He continued to yell some more - probably obscenities, not that you could really understand him. Huffing, you rethought your decision to let him live. You had all of his money and credit card information, and when he first came into the hotel room, he had the audacity to try and make a move on you instead of calling for help. The world wouldn't be missing somebody disgusting like this.

Without even tearing your gaze from the T.V., you used the man's shadow to spear him through the heart, just as your episode had ended. Great - because of this jerk, you missed another ending where Ladybug and Chat Noir barely figured out who the other was.

Brushing chip crumbs onto the floor, you stood up to peer over at the dead body of Mr. Businessman, only to grimace. There's no way you could brush this off, and after an over-exasperated groan, you walked over. You supposed you could just take the body into your shadow to dispose of him in an alley, but the blood stains were a whole other story...

This was something you should have thought through better.

After using your _hatsu_ to travel between shadows to drop the dead body in an alleyway a couple of blocks down, you had decided to walk back to your hotel like a normal person. Besides, you were definitely going to need bleach to get the blood stain out of the hotel carpet.

It was early in the evening - the sun had just finished setting, the sky an array of purples and dark blues. Light pollution in York New City was terrible, so seeing the stars was impossible, but the sky itself looked mostly clear, save for a few wispy clouds. It was a nice night out. The breeze wasn't too terrible, and the streets had died down a little bit from the day's earlier hustle and bustle. 

After picking up a bottle of bleach from a corner store, using Mr. Businessman's money to pay for it, you had started to make your way back. You really didn't have anything else to do until the auction tomorrow, and while exploring _did_ sound fun, you weren't sure if that was something you wanted to risk if the city was crawling with hideous spiders. It was bad enough Shalnark knew you were here - no doubt he had gone back to tell your brother about your presence. You wouldn't put it past Chrollo to come seek you out, especially if he had an inkling that you were going to sabotage a heist.

That was something you were certain on. Why else would they all mobilize in a city such as York New? No doubt, they were also planning on hitting the York New City auction, and you'd be damned if they got a hold of your book first. Then you'd be forced to seek them out yourself, and that was _not_ something you wanted to do. No, you'd just have to get _Monochopsis_ first.

According to the auction catalog, _Monochopsis_ would be in the first night's auction. That was good news for you; the sooner you could get out of York New City, the better. You weren't sure when your brother was going to strike, and you wanted to limit your interactions with the Troupe if possible.

Shopping trip easily ended, you didn't dilly-dally around, heading straight back to the Hotel Beitacle. Waving cheerily at the front desk staff, you went up to your hotel room, not bothering to open the door and instead slipping underneath it through the shadow. You had left the lights on for that exact reason, considering you couldn't slip into shadows if there weren't any shadows to slip into.

Usually you weren't one to worry about cleaning your messes, but considering you were going to be in this hotel room for a week at most, you didn't want the hotel staff to get suspicious. Unsure of what else to do, you just poured bleach straight onto the carpet, crinkling your nose at the smell.

That was it, right? Did you leave it to dry, or scrub it? You weren't sure, but figured you'd just let it be for now.

Done with your little cleaning spell, you then ordered room service to come switch out the blankets, sheets, and towels, making sure to put Mr. Businessman's suitcase over the bleach stain so you weren't questioned. You gave a cheesy grin when the maid had entered, claiming you were Mr. Businessman's (his ID had read Ginti Vesalius) niece. She had nodded, and clearly thought you were a bit younger than you looked as she patted your head and told you to tell your 'uncle' that it wasn't safe to leave you unsupervised. 

It was hard to resist the urge to laugh, but you managed.

With everything in the hotel room pretty much cleaned and replaced, you turned the television back on to watch more _Miraculous Ladybug_ and order food from the hotel kitchen. Without Ginti to bug you anymore, you could watch your show in peace.

Besides, Ginti seemed to have _plenty_ of money on his cards, so you didn't mind using it all up.

"Turn the light off... fuuuck...."

Smacking the back of your hand over your eyes to block out the sun, you groaned in irritation. You must have fallen asleep after you had finished _Miraculous Ladybug_ and moved onto _She-ra_. The television, which had been on a timer, had turned itself off - hopefully you hadn't missed too many episodes.

Groaning once more, you finally pushed yourself off the bed, yanking the window curtains closed in irritation to keep the sunlight from streaming in anymore. You wiped some drool off your chin from your restless sleep, and meandered about the room, trying to wake yourself up.

Finally, you found your phone and powered it on, only to light up at both the time and the date.

_It's already three in the afternoon... shit!_

You had _not_ meant to sleep in that long and felt somewhat embarrassed with yourself. Any longer, and you'd have no time to prepare for tonight, the first night of York New City's infamous auction. You had decided against sneaking in through the back to steal from the vault under the guise of your alter ego, "Shadow Thief". Yeah, you could stay in the shadows, but even you couldn't hold up _nen_ for too long, not to mention you weren't sure how heavily guarded it was. If the vault was anything like it was in all of those heist movies you liked to watch, you knew it'd be sealed tight - you wouldn't be able to slip in through the cracks, there.

That meant one thing: you'd have to go in the old fashioned way. Dress up, look cute, and play the part of an innocent attendee of the auction. Then, when they bring _Monochopsis_ out, you could easily use the shadows to snatch it away. It was such a simple and straight-forward plan that you were prepared for, not to mention your safest bet. You knew your brother wouldn't have the group be so blatant in attacking the auction up front, right? Surrounded by hundreds of mafioso, you figured you'd be safe.

First things first, though... You had to look the part. Amused, you wondered if this is where the shopping montage in movies would come into play, before realizing you'd need friends to have a shopping montage. It sucked, but being a criminal on the run didn't really _grant_ that leisure.

Supposing you were going to have to make do with your solitary shopping trip, you quickly made yourself look presentable and left the hotel room. Needing to lay low until the auction, you figured you could use your "uncle's" credit card instead of stealing clothes. Besides, it's not like _he_ was going to be using it any time soon.

Shoot, was that too soon?

Snickering to yourself, you used your newly acquired phone to search up nearby shops. Considering the auction was a black-tie event, you were going to need to dress yourself in the nines. 

Maybe you were a bit more excited than you ought to be.

You had three hours before you had to head off to the auction and to acquire the book that would, hopefully, lead to your fortune. Just the thought had you feeling giddy, and you continued on with your extravagant shopping trip, unaware of the eyes that followed your every move.


	7. All Around Me Are Familiar Faces (And I Hate It)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When you joked about liking being restrained, this is NOT what you meant. Maybe next time you'll learn to actually heed the warnings you get.

6:30pm.

Standing in front of the auction hall, you smoothed down the dress you wore. You wound up going plain - a backless halter dress that hugged every curve of yours perfectly. There was a thigh slit on one side, and you had paired it with expensive jewelry. You could barely recognize yourself when you looked in the hotel mirror - you looked _mature_.

Of course, you _weren't_ a child, you had been an adult for a bit, but you usually stuck with comfort over appearance. Adding your chaotic personality to that, people often thought you were much younger than you were. But now?

You felt like god damn royalty.

Content with your appearance, you had slipped on a pair of heels and left the hotel, holding your head up high. You didn't need to worry about getting through security as you deftly merged with the shadows cast by other people. It was so crowded, nobody had paid you any attention as you reappeared past the checkpoint. 

A piece of cake.

Mafioso all around were conversing with each other in an unending dick-measuring contest. If one guy had a car, the next one had _ten_ of those cars; if one guy was starting a collection, oh, look, this guy has all of the rare items for that collection. Maybe you weren't one to talk about material possessions, considering you were planning on stealing a book because of a _rumor_ that it would lead to treasure, but at least you weren't as annoying as the people around you. Did they really only care about being seen for their wealth?

You kept your face neutral, not wanting the disdain that you felt made clear to everybody else. Instead, you took in the wide auction hall. It was extravagant and over the top, with a grandeur podium on an elevated stage on the other end. Grandiose red curtains - probably real velvet - hung on the wall behind the podium, and everybody else was dressed in their best.

The auction was due to start promptly at 7pm, and you were quick to find a seat in the middle, not wanting to stand out at all. This was going to be a covert mission - get the book, and get out.

Feeling your phone buzz, you withdrew it to see you had gotten a text from Shalnark. You scrunched up your nose in confusion.

**To: [Y/n]**   
**From: Shalnark**

**[6:55 PM]:** Hey, you probably shouldn't be in the auction hall right now :)

Okay, you did _not_ like that he knew your location. Instead of questioning it, though, you sent a quick text telling him to fuck off before you turned your phone off. The auction was going to start any minute - you didn't need some cryptic message to ruin this for you. You needed to be 100% focused.

Looking at your nails as everybody was settling down, you hadn't realized who had all walked on the stage until they spoke as you were too focused on trying to get a piece of dirt out from underneath your nail.

"Gentlemen, welcome... Let's skip the formalities, and..."

" _Die_."

Hearing the familiar, accented voice had triggered your flight or fight response immediately. Without even looking to confirm, you melted into the shadows, and just in time as loud, ear-ringing blasts reverberated throughout the auction hall. Screams and curses joined the fray, and you had trouble trying to jump from shadow to shadow with all of the chaos. One misstep and you'd be back in the light, and you weren't about to see what it was like getting shot by Franklin's specialty emitter attack.

Once more people dropped like flies, and you didn't have to worry about the shadows moving, you began to dart between them, making your way to the door.

"Blinky-chan, suck up all of the blood, corpses, body parts, and possessions of dead people in this room!"

That wasn't a voice you recognized, and immediately you could feel yourself getting dragged across the room. Not wanting to risk it, you dropped your _nen_ , bubbling up from the shadow you hid in. Looking around, you noticed the room was completely empty - no blood, no chairs, no dead bodies. It was all _gone_. Unfortunately, that left you in a very difficult predicament.

Being in an empty room meant two things, neither of them good: one, you were spotted immediately. Two, there was nothing around you casting a shadow for you to hide in, and you couldn't hide in your own shadow, you could only control it.

Shit.

You gave a sheepish grin as Franklin and Feitan's faces lit up in recognition - you didn't recognize the third person, but she was most definitely with the Troupe if she was here and still, well, alive.

Launching yourself backward, you had been aiming for the door, your plan being on slipping underneath the door. You were fast, appearing in front of it in a blink of an eye, but still were nothing matched against Feitan's speed as he appeared in front of you, blocking the doorway.

That's all you needed - immediately, you gave a cocky grin, noticing the shadow he cast. _Perfect_.

Realizing only milliseconds after you had that you were going to escape, Feitan grunted and pulled you close. He was shorter than you - unsurprising, given he was only 4'9" - but had been quick to take action. Spinning you around, you yelped as he kicked your legs so you were on your knees, his hands immediately covering your eyes and effectively blocking you from seeing the shadows around.

 _Shit_. You had forgotten that Feitan knew your _hatsu_ like the back of his hand.

You tried to pry Feitan's hands off your eyes, a slew of curses leaving your mouth. Strength may not have been your specialty, but you _were_ strong. Just not as strong as Feitan.

"[Y/n]. Didn't expect to see you so far away from home."

Franklin's deep voice boomed throughout the auction hall, and you stopped struggling for a moment.

"I'd say it's nice to see you but considering I can't see...."

Feitan's grip over your eyes tightened in retaliation, and you grunted, feeling his fingers digging into your face. If this bruised later, you were going to _murder_ him. The woman whose name you didn't know spoke up, clearly confused, asking who you were. Franklin responded to her.

"This is the boss's younger sister."

The woman let out a small "ooo" in realization, and you tried once more to move Feitan's hands from your eyes futilely. Any minute now, those doors were going to be busting open by members of the mafia - your _companions_ seemed to recognize this too, as Feitan shifted so one hand was still covering your eyes. He reached down, and you realized too late that he had ripped a strip off the bottom of your dress.

" _Hey_ , I literally just got this!"

"Shut up."

The ripped fabric was wrapped around your head, acting as a makeshift blindfold so Feitan wouldn't have to keep his hands over your eyes. Before you could rip it off (and _yes_ , you were planning on exactly that) your arms were yanked behind your back, the familiar bite of rope digging into your wrists.

"Are we taking her back with us?"

This came from the unknown Troupe member, and Feitan shoved you forward. You were scowling, your earlier light mood gone at the realization that you may have to come face-to-face with your brother after all. Larger hands wrapped around you before you were hoisted over somebody's shoulder, and it didn't take a genius for you to know Franklin was carrying you.

"This is kidnapping." As if they cared, but you continued nonetheless. "Look, I'm not here to interrupt your guys' school field trip or whatever, so let me go, okay? I just need one thing, and then I'll be on my merry way."

Nobody responded as they all walked out leisurely, as if they hadn't just murdered a whole bunch of people. Finally, Feitan spoke up, his voice a grunt.

"You're not kid."

You floundered for a moment. "I'm not - what?"

"Not kidnapping. You're not kid."

If you weren't bound, you would have dragged your hands down your face in exasperation. You weren't sure why you even bothered at this point, considering your wit seemed to be lost on everybody around you. Instead, you opted to stay quiet, using _en_ to 'see' who else was around. Your options were pretty limited, here.

Eventually, you could sense others, some having _nen_ that you recognized in an instant. Thankfully, your brother was absent - and hopefully would stay that way. Escape wasn't completely off the table yet, right?

"Wait, is that who I think it is?" That was definitely Nobunaga's voice, and the thundering one that spoke up next with glee was _definitely_ Uvogin.

"[Y/N]! Kiddo, the fuck are you doing here?!"

You were lifted off Franklin's back and immediately enveloped into a bone-crushing hug that you couldn't even return, a small wheeze leaving your lungs. You didn't bother to respond as he let you down, and you stumbled for a moment, disoriented. The ground beneath your feet felt weird, almost patched together. It wasn't natural, that's for certain.

"I'm guessing she's after something in the auction." That voice was new, but one you also knew. You faced the voice and grinned.

"Ah, Machi, long time no - uh, hear! That intuition is still going strong, I see."

The ground jolted beneath you, and you stumbled. Your first instinct was to reach your hand out to grab something for balance, but your hands were bound, and the sudden surprise had nearly caused you to fall. An arm wrapped around your shoulder, pulling you into somebody's side as a light-hearted voice laughed.

"I didn't think we'd be meeting again so soon."

Ah, Shalnark - speaking of which, you were _definitely_ regretting not listening to that text he had sent. You could have avoided _all_ of this if you just had left the auction, and now you were being kidnapped by your brother's Boyscout Troupe. Talk about a night gone wrong.

Not responding to Shalnark, you were too interested in the feeling of being lightweight, not even pulling yourself away from him as he still held you close. It took a hot moment for you to place the feeling, but when you did... You felt the blood drain from your face.

"Please tell me we aren't up in the air."

"Oh, that's right. You're not good with open heights, huh, [Y/n]?"

You tried to ignore Nobunaga's teasing, especially when he pointed out, " _And_ your _hatsu_ won't work from this high up. You'd have nowhere to go."

As if the entire Troupe wanted you to suffer, Shalnark was quick to take the blindfold off for a bit, and you had to take a moment to allow your eyesight to readjust. It was dark out, but you were able to see everybody around you thanks to the dim light in the center of the basket. You were quick to figure out you were in a hot air balloon; and in a moment of brilliance and idiocy, you peered over the edge to see just how high up you were.

"Holy SHIT."

You couldn't even melt into the shadows. Where the fuck would you go? 

Turning away from the edge swiftly, you kept your face neutral, the only tell that you were terrified out of your mind being the clenching of your fists. With your vision back, you were able to fully see who all was here; Feitan, Franklin, Shalnark, Uvogin, Machi, Nobunaga, and the new member. Uvogin was now on the phone, and you promptly ignored him, already able to guess who he was talking to.

"So, um... Y'all want to play cards or something on our way there?"

Yeah, you were not going to be going anywhere any time soon.


	8. Honey I Shrunk the Phantom Troupe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Machi make a killer team at playing Cheat - you decide to play Cheat in real life, too, after being ignored one too many times.

When you suggested playing cards, you didn't think that's what you were actually going to wind up doing. After the hot air balloon had been shot down by the mafia, you had been quick to promise you weren't going to try to escape, your reasoning being that you knew when to call it quits. Really, it was because you didn't want to risk Uvogin causing an earthquake to disrupt the shadows or have him curb stomp you into oblivion.

Because of this, you weren't blindfolded, but Machi was quick to untie the rope around your wrists and resecure you with her _nen_ strings, completely binding your arms to your side and rendering you even more immobile than before.

You were unamused.

Down in the crater, Uvogin was having the time of his life, taking on all of the mafioso by himself. Up on the ledge was where you all sat in a half circle, currently playing cards. Well, the other Troupe members were - considering your hands weren't actually free to play, you had forced Machi to let you be on her "team". Her poker face was great, and Feitan was choosing to not play with you all.

"Seven."

You looked over at Nobunaga skeptically. "I'm calling bullshit, there's no way."

He flipped over the card to reveal a queen of hearts, and you grinned victoriously as he picked up the entire discard pile, grumbling the entire time. Shizuku - that was the black-haired girl's name, you found out - looked over at Nobunaga and pointed out blankly, "You're pretty bad at this game, Nobunaga."

"SHUT UP!"

As the game resumed, you glanced back down at the crater, furrowing your eyebrows as a couple of newcomers showed up, ones who could use _nen_ no less. Machi followed your gaze, her gaze icy as ever.

"Shadow Beasts," she pointed out. "Even three - no, four of them - are no match for Uvo."

She was right, of course. Uvogin was unconcerned, having the time of his life, and so you tuned back to your guys' game of cheat. With Machi's excellent poker face, and your great memory skills on what cards had been played so far, the two of you were definitely kicking ass, with Shizuku right behind you guys.

"I'm calling a bluff on that."

Shalnark deadpanned at you and Machi, although the twinkling in his eyes showed he was enjoying himself. "I quit."

You and Nobunaga snorted, and your little group continued to play, ignoring the carnage completely from below. Your team remained in the lead, you and Machi expertly calling out everybody's lies and getting away with lying smoothly to win the game.

Glancing down again to see that most of the shadow beasts were dead, your eyebrows furrowed in realization. Machi realized too and immediately let go of the _nen_ strings, just in time for you to cover your ears safely to avoid being killed by Uvogin's loud ass voice. As everybody else started to yell, you focused on popping out your limbs, rolling your shoulders. At the sharp look you received from Machi, you grinned, raising both hands up.

"Hey, I'm going no where. See?"

Clearly your captors weren't going to believe you, but they also had bigger problems to deal with - bigger problems meaning a paralyzed Uvogin who may very well die tomorrow because of leaches in his bloodstream. Disgusting.

Walking to the edge, you jumped down, landing gracefully next to Shalnark as he gave Uvogin the doctor's orders. "Get cucked, Uvo," you joked, and he gave you a grin as if he wasn't possibly facing death by leach eggs.

"You've still got a fucking mouth, I see."

You shrugged lazily, but before you could retort with something equally as sarcastic, you watched in confusion as chains appeared around the paralyzed Troupe member before immediately yanking the giant upwards. You attempted to jump into Uvogin's shadow to follow, but sensing your intention, Feitan quickly pinned you down, roughly shoving your face into the sandy ground.

"Ehm noth twyin tuh ethcay!" you protested, your voice muffled as you tried to get Feitan off of you. "GE AWFF!"

Unsurprisingly, you were ignored.

"I coated my string with _zetsu_ , as long as they don't use _gyo_ or find the needle, we can follow them. And I'm retying [Y/n] up for good measure."

"Littily fuh oo all."

After Machi was done tying you up again, Franklin had declared he would go grab beer for Uvogin. With Franklin gone, Nobunaga was on carrying duty - thank god they didn't blindfold you again, as you would have been even moodier than you already were.

Shoved tightly in between Shizuku and Nobunaga, you were left grumbling. "I was trying to go into Uvogin's shadow to follow him, you assholes..."

Ignored, again.

_Heart been broke so many times..._

Slumping in irritation that nobody was going to fuel your responses, you switched to sullenly pouting like a petulant child, unamused by how this entire evening had panned out. At this rate, you really _did_ have no choice. You were going to wind up being taken back to the Phantom Troupe hideout, and that was _not_ a confrontation you were planning on having. Last time Chrollo and literally anybody else knew, you had been in Meteor City. Where you were _supposed_ to be.

Not only where you not where you were supposed to be, but your last meeting with both Chrollo and the Phantom Troupe had been less than ideal. The last time they had visited Meteor City, one of the older Troupe members had tried to make a pass at you and you had killed him instantly. Apparently, Shizuku had replaced him as the new number 8 - good riddance. You liked Shizuku a _lot_ more.

There was still time, though. You figured your best window to escape would be when Uvogin is found. You'd have to be quick, and hope it was an area with plenty of shadows to hide in. You didn't have to outrun them completely, you were just going to have to get far enough to use _zetsu_ and wait them out, much like you did to Shalnark and Phinks when you first met them.

Keeping your face neutral, you started to hash out your plan more, only to be interrupted by... Wait, what _was_ that?

"Fun Fun Cloth!"

You absolutely had no time to react or get out of the car as you and Nobunaga immediately became trapped, the two of you seeming to shrink down.

"HEY, LET ME OUT OF HERE!"

As Nobunaga started to rage, hitting you upside the head on accident, you could only lean against the car door, not even bothering to do anything at this point.

"This is it. This is officially the worst night of my entire life, I just can't."

"YOU--"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP, NOBU _BAKA_!"

You couldn't focus with his angry yelling, and you took a deep breath. Nobunaga's angry and indignant yelling had turned towards your "disrespectful" nickname, but now it was his turn to be ignored as you took in your surroundings. Whatever space you were trapped in, it didn't block off light completely. Moonlight still streamed in, casting eerie shadows across the car. Your timing would have to be perfect, but if you timed it _correctly_...

The moment they release the car, and consequently you and Nobunaga, you could melt into the shadows, take the Troupe by surprise, and escape.

Sounds of fighting could be heard outside, and you could only guess they were the remaining Shadow Beasts. Whether they were or not didn't matter, as the fight was gone much too quickly.

 _Nen_ started to dilate around you, everything seeming to warp and turn back to normal.

_This is my cue!_

Activating your own _nen_ , you sunk into the shadow thrown by the car seat, Nobunaga immediately cursing. You didn't wait for somebody to open the car door - you slipped out, immediately making it to shadows cast by the shrubbery and rock formations and making your way back to the city, ignoring the shouts of aggravation behind you.

By some miracle, you had managed to escape the Phantom Troupe.

Driving down the road, having lost the Phantom Troupe, the chain user known as Kurapika gripped the steering wheel tightly, his knuckles white from the grip. Beside him, a small, balding woman named Melody looked on worriedly. Kurapika's heart was a raging cacophony of anger and sorrow, of bitter resentment towards their chained up captive.

It scared Melody, but she wasn't sure if she was more scared _of_ Kurapika, or _for_ Kurapika.

"Kurapika," she softly called out to him. He hummed lowly in acknowledgment, but otherwise said or did nothing to indicate he had heard Melody. The hunter took this as her cue to continue. "That girl back there... She didn't belong to the Troupe. They restrained her as you took _him_."

". . . I know."

Despite the nonchalance in his voice, Melody could sense a twinge of regret. None of them had time to help the poor [h/c] woman out back there. Was she dead, by now? The thought was terrifying, but not implausible. It was the Phantom Troupe they were dealing with, after all; she was definitely not a Troupe member, so there was no reason why they would keep her alive.

The rest of the ride back to their hidden building was eerily silent, nobody speaking as they transported Uvogin to a secure room to strap him down and get all of the guards in there so that the head bodyguard, Dalzollene, could interrogate him. 

"Where are the auction items?"

Despite being strapped down, Uvogin retained an air of confidence, as if this was a daily routine for him.

"If you let me go, I'll spare you all. We haven't stolen anything, when we got there, the vault was empty."

Kurapika's gaze was stormy, piercing into the 11th spider. "Our colleagues were in the auction hall. What did you guys do to them?"

Uvogin's answer was delivered with apathy. "Sorry to say, they're dead."

_Smack._

On impulse, Kurapika had brought his fist down, breaking Uvogin's nose. Melody started forward, but Kurapika wasn't finished, rage nearly consuming him completely.

"He's being truthful..." Melody admitted.

"And what of that girl you all held captive? With the [h/c] hair?!"

Grinning, Uvogin told his first lie.

"By now? Probably dead."


	9. Gun and Kira

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You run into a very heated Uvogin. The next day, you run into two more familiar faces, but can't seem to remember their names. Gone and Kyla? Gun and Kira? You're not sure, but you're certainly interested in their plans.

It was risky, but you _had_ to go back to Hotel Beitacle. Right now, Uvogin would be the Troupe's highest priority, making this your only chance to head back to the hotel. In any other circumstance, you would just ditch it. It wasn't worth it.

Well, it _wouldn't_ be worth it if you hadn't left your backpack in your hotel room, the one with your diary detailing basically your entire life. It was a _huge_ risk, but one that you had no choice but to take.

You didn't bother with playing around. Managing to make it into the hotel room undetected, you grabbed your bag swiftly, making sure you had everything you needed. After that was done, out of curiosity, you lifted the suitcase to see how well the bleach had worked on the blood stain. Apparently, you had messed something up, as the entire patch of carpet was faded. Whoops.

Grimacing sheepishly, you finally left the room, not coming out of the shadows until you were a good two or three blocks away from the hotel. Rising up on mostly empty streets, you could feel both exhaustion and irritation set in.

Not only was _Monochopsis_ missing, but you had no clue what to do now. This entire plan had been a shit show, and you couldn't help but be at a loss as to what to do next. It wasn't too late to leave York New, but then you'd, once _again,_ be at rock bottom. Leaving the city empty-handed was undesirable, just as much as seeing your older brother was. 

The Phantom Troupe didn't have the auction items - not right now, at least. Chrollo always got what he wanted, though, meaning sooner or later they _would_ have the items. 

If you weren't going to leave the city, this left you two options - find your book first, or seek out your brother and hang around until he got the book himself. You didn't like the thought of going back to the Troupe, especially after you had _just_ gotten rid of them, but you couldn't think of any other options right now.

 _I'll get a motel room and sleep_ , you decided first. _I can come up with a decision in the morning_. There was no point in lamenting over the missing book right now. The night had been absolutely exhausting, and you wanted nothing more than to get some much-needed rest. 

"Kid?!"

The booming voice was recognizable, and you suppressed a groan as you turned around to face Uvogin. Immediately, your eyebrows shot up. There was barely noticeable bruising on his face. Did somebody deck him in the face? Who could even get _away_ with that?

"What are you doing by yourself?" There was nobody else with Uvogin, it was just him, and that baffled you. From what you could remember, Troupe members always traveled in pairs at _least_ , so for Uvogin to be out alone was strange.

The beast of the man scowled, a terrifying look on his face that nearly made you shudder. "I'm going to go tear that wretched chain user apart and make him pay!"

Yeah, that made sense. Uvogin had always been a prideful man, and that capture definitely would have kicked his ego in a bit. You felt really bad for the poor sap that had made the mistake of getting on Uvogin's bad side. He was _definitely_ dead.

Spreading your arms open, you gave Uvogin a charming smile. "A hug before you go kick some ass, then?"

The man lumbered over to you and hugged you instantly, lifting you off the ground as you heard your spine crack loudly. Honestly, it felt a bit good, and you hugged Uvogin back as tight as you could, allowing yourself to relax for a bit. Finally, Uvogin set you back down, grinning down at you and ruffling your hair. You swatted his hands away.

"Stop treating my like a kid, I'm an adult now!"

Your complaining fell deaf on Uvogin's ears. "You'll always be like my kid sister," he said. "Especially since you're still so fucking short."

"I'M NOT SHORT, YOU'RE JUST FREAKISHLY TALL?!"

Uvogin guffawed at your shout of indignation, starting to walk past you. "I'll see you later, kiddo. I have that chain bastard to kill."

Turning around, for some reason you felt your heart drop, a strange feeling that should be out of place in a meeting so casual. Before Uvogin could run off, you spoke up. "Be... Be careful, okay? I'll see you later. For sure."

The man snorted, and you could tell he was annoyed by your comment. "What, you think I can't take him on? I'm going to pulverize him until there's nothing left!"

With that said, Uvogin jumped off, disappearing in a flash, and you felt that strange feeling tighten around your heart, worrying you even more. Uvogin was strong. You had absolutely no _reason_ to be worried, there was no reason whatsoever, and yet as you stood there in the empty street, you couldn't help but feel as if that was the shittiest 'goodbye' ever.

After a moment of standing there, more serious than you usually were, you finally managed to get your feet shuffling along again. You ducked into the first motel you saw, using the dead businessman's credit card to book a room. The entire time you only half paid attention to your surroundings, your mind still on Uvogin and his fight with the mysterious chain user. Was it over by now? Uvogin was probably the physically strongest member of the Phantom Troupe.

 _You don't even want to be_ involved _with the Phantom Troupe, why the hell are you so worried_ _?!_

You couldn't answer yourself, and finally you had decided it was time to rest, not even bothering to change out of your ripped and bloodied dress as you unceremoniously threw yourself onto the stiff mattress. By the time your head hit the pillow, sleep had already taken over you.

Waking up felt surreal. The previous night's events seemed to hit you with a flash, and you lied in bed for a moment, allowing yourself to just mull over it all. Without a doubt, your brother now knew you were in the same city as him. You doubted he'd seek you out during a heist, but afterwards? Time was ticking, and you weren't even sure how much time you _had_. 

One thing was for sure - you had no idea where the auction goods were, and last you knew, neither had the Troupe. Did you stand a chance on finding the items before they did?

You weren't sure, but you didn't think so.

Damn it all.

Considering last night's infiltration had been a failure on an epic proportion, you had to come up with an alternative game plan. Clearly, you weren't leaving York New City, not without that god forsaken book. This left you with one other option.

As much as you hated to admit it, you were going to have to seek out the Troupe after all. After your little stunt yesterday, you weren't sure escape would be as easy once you got that book, but you'd figure something out.

 _It won't be that bad, right? I mean, they won't_ kill _me. Right?_

Let's see . . . Your brother had forbid you from leaving Meteor City. Strike one.

You killed the previous Troupe number eight that Shizuku had replaced. Strike two.

You destroyed all of the books he had left with you in Meteor City out of spite and a childish tantrum. Strike three.

. . .

"Shit. Chrollo is going to fucking _murder_ me." Leave it to you to have a psychopath as your only family member.

Finally peeling yourself off the bed, you managed to force yourself to get out of the bloody dress you had been wearing, taking a brief shower and changing into normal clothes. No point in going under cover as your alternate persona, 'Shadow Thief'. Partially because the Troupe members familiar with you would recognize your ability immediately, but also - you weren't seeking out the Troupe hideout to start a fight or rob them. You were going to _attempt_ to make peace.

 _Attempt_.

Hopefully this doesn't wind up a disaster.

Taking your bag with you - you didn't trust to leave anything of importance in this shady shithole - you left the motel. You hadn't slept in too late, but with your phone being dead from forgetting to charge it, you couldn't be too certain of what time it currently was.

"Okay. Go in, suck up to my brother, get that book, and then get the hell outta dodge. Sounds easy enough."

Except for the fact that you had _no_ clue where their hideout was. Most likely, some place that was completely run down and falling apart, away from civilization. Were there any places near York New City that matched that? As somebody who wasn't familiar with the area, you didn't know.

You supposed you'd have to hope you find a local and ask them. Would that seem suspicious? Probably.

As you got to the more populated and touristy area of the city, you tried to keep an eye out for anybody who seemed more local. With the auction week in full swing, a majority of the people you saw were clearly visitors, sporting generic backpacks and fanny packs, consulting maps, and spending money on marketplace items that would be useless in the long run.

Just as you were about to approach one of the vendors, your stomach had growled painfully loud, and you stopped. It was too noisy for anybody nearby to probably hear, but that didn't help get rid of the light blush of embarrassment that immediately coated your cheeks.

 _Okay, okay... Food first, and_ then _hideout_.

Using somebody else's credit card, your options were basically limitless, but you weren't picky and didn't want to have to go far. Looking around, you spotted a towering building - a shopping center, with a small group of restaurants and cafés on one of the higher floors. That was good enough, plus if you got a seat by a window, it would give you a great vantage point. Two birds with one stone!

In the end, you had chosen a smaller, almost cutesy café. It was a seat yourself type of deal, and so you just waltzed in, heading towards the farthest booth in the back by the window.

"Oh, it's you!"

The booth was taken, and you did a double take at the two familiar faces that greeted you; one with suspicion, one with realization. It took you a moment to remember them.

"Oh, the kids from the blimp!"

Shoot, what were their names again? Gone and Kyla? Gun and Kira? With them was a man you didn't recognize, but he looked similar enough to Gun that he was probably his dad or older brother or something.

"It's the old hag," Kira retorted, and you pressed your lips in a thin line, not amused. You all were on a high story of the building, and just now you were tempted to yeet the brat out of the window and see if he could survive.

. . . Probably shouldn't do that, though. 

"I didn't realize this spot was taken, so I guess I'll go sit somewhere else," you huffed, and the older man piped up immediately.

"Wait, a pretty girl like you can join us anytime!"

"LEORIO!"

Squinting, you regarded the man, [e/c] eyes narrowed in dismay. ". . . Sorry, I don't date old men and I'm not interest in a sugar daddy." Immediately, Kira burst out into laughter, and the man - Leorio - blew up.

"I'M A TEEN LIKE YOU!"

". . . _Excuse me_?" Disregarding the fact that you _weren't_ a teen, the fact he was younger than you was shocking, and you sighed, scratching your cheek lightly with your index finger. " _I'm_ not even a teen, meaning I'm the oldest here . . . Can I sit?"

One omurice and weird explanation later, you had "caught up" with the kids - _Gon_ and _Killua_ , not _Gun_ and _Kira_. Killua had been pretty pressed when you called him Kira.

Leaning back, your earlier levity was gone. "You kids really don't take warnings, huh? Again, there's no way that you two can capture a Troupe member. Unless . . . "

Your lips quirked upwards, and Gon's eyebrows shot up in excitement. "Unless?!"

This was probably going to be a mistake - no, there was no probably about it, but you could use these kids two find the hideout. Besides, they'd get themselves killed if you didn't go along, and while Killua was an annoying brat, it didn't mean you wished for them to _die_. They were amusing, not to mention hella ballsy to even think about tracking down a Troupe member.

Your smirk turned into an outright grin, excitement coursing through your veins.

"Unless I join y'all."


	10. It's Not My Fault That My Only Existing Family is the Worst

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You fill Gun, Kira, and Leroy out about your brother and his stupid hobby. You're not as sneaky as you thought you were.

"Down there - the couple spotted the two members down there."

Despite Leorio's earlier idiocy, he was taking the actual mission seriously, leading you to believe he was pretty intelligent underneath that initial persona. Peering over, you grimaced and leaned back in your seat, taking a sip of your drink.

"That's them alright," you confirmed, equally as serious. "Machi Komacine and Nobunaga Hazama. It's weird they're just out in public, though..."

Something wasn't right, the two seemed to be _wanting_ to be found despite their disguises. They were trying to lure somebody out . . . But who? Your first thought was yourself, but that didn't make sense. They wouldn't go to this trouble to lure _you_ out. They were waiting for somebody who _wanted_ to find them, and as far as they knew, you still were avoiding them like the plague.

As always, Killua was instantly suspicious, electric blue eyes narrowed warily. "How do you know so much about the Phantom Troupe?"

Three pairs of eyes looked at you expectantly, causing you to groan. You supposed the topic couldn't be avoided much longer, but if you told them the truth, they might rescind their agreement in letting you tag along. At the same time... Your knowledge on the Phantom Troupe would be valuable to them, and you doubted they would just ignore that.

In a rare show of reluctance, you stirred your drink with your straw listlessly, lips thinned. ". . . My brother."

"Your brother?"

". . . I told you kids how I was actively avoiding the Phantom Troupe before, right?" You earned two nods from Gon and Killua. "It's because my brother - my only family - is none other than the leader of the Phantom Troupe."

. . .

. . .

. . . 

"WHAT?!"

At the three shouts of exclamation you grimaced, hands waving around. "H-Hey, keep it down! You're going to attract attention! Just let me explain before you all jump to conclusions!"

The looks of shock didn't fade, but they at least stayed quiet, allowing you to explain your side of the story.

"I was born and grew up in Meteor City," you started, staring off to the side contemplatively. "There - in Meteor City, it's either kill or be killed. It's a lawless wasteland where people go to be forgotten. By all means... Meteor City doesn't exist. _We_ don't exist. My brother - he wanted more. He didn't want to waste away in a city of dying dreams, and so he created the Phantom Troupe.

"He also left me behind in the process. He was adamant I stay in Meteor City, especially since I was so young at the time and he didn't want to watch over his kid sister, yanno? I didn't like that, of course. When they came back to Meteor City, I killed one of the Troupe members before destroying all of my brother's stuff and running off. Since then, I've been avoiding them, and until now, it's done me well."

It was a heavy bombshell to drop, and the three of your acquaintances (you did _not_ consider them friends) mulled over your words. Gon was the first to accept it, his face unnaturally serious as well.

"You killed one of the Troupe members..."

"Number eight," you said proudly, holding your head up high. "And I have absolutely _no_ regrets about that whatsoever."

You doubted Killua would ever trust you, he was a suspicious person by nature, but at least he wasn't going to try and attack you, it seemed. However, the reason for your avoidance had now shed light on your current situation, only adding to confuse the odd trio. Leorio was the first to vocalize this, eyebrows furrowed.

"Wait wait wait. Why do you want to help us track them _now_ if you're avoiding them?

A valid question.

"They have something of mine," you huffed, crossing your arms. It wasn't _technically_ yours either, but you weren't going to tell them _that_. "Ideally, I'd like to find their base, sneak in, grab what I need, and sneak out without getting caught. Anyways, if I go with y'all, you're less likely to get killed."

Gon nodded once, determination set in his features. "Then we'll follow them!"

It was a gamble, and you could tell Killua wasn't too happy about his friend's decision, but there was clearly no convincing Gon otherwise. He was a bit like Uvogin - extremely stubborn and impulsive. Probably was an enhancer, too.

"If it gets dangerous at _all_ \- if they give any sign that they notice us - you two leave. Got it?"

Your tone left no room for arguments, and while Killua was displeased with your bossy attitude, he wasn't going to protest. You received two nods. Looking over at Leorio, you tapped your nose in thought. "You don't really know _nen_ it seems, so you'll just get in the way."

"OI--"

"Just go back to wherever you're staying and stand by to receive a call."

Down on the streets below, Machi and Nobunaga were getting ready to move. Taking this as your guys' cue, you stood up. Ideally, you'd just follow them in the shadows. You were proficient enough to be able to use _zetsu_ simultaneously, but when you did those at the same time, your _zetsu_ was weaker. It was like patting your head and rubbing your stomach at the same time. Not _impossible_ , but difficult, and that meant both techniques, while strong on their own, were weaker when used together. Furthermore, Machi and Nobunaga could easily sense you out - hiding in the shadows _and_ using _zetsu_ increased their likelihood of detecting you.

While it limited your mobility, your best bet would be to trail them like a normal person and use _zetsu_. As somebody mostly stealth-based, your _zetsu_ was near perfect, and against the Phantom Troupe, you needed all of the stealth you could get. It was bad enough you'd be trailing after Machi and Nobunaga with two less-proficient _nen_ users, but you couldn't afford to be picky, not right now. 

Silently, you, Gon, and Killua all agreed on a signal and left Leorio behind. Even if they didn't show it, even if the three of you were using _zetsu_ , you _knew_ Machi and Nobunaga knew they were being followed. They weren't fools, and as great as you were at using _zetsu_ , Machi was leagues better than you.

Nobunaga was debatable.

For what it was worth, Gon and Killua were surprisingly good at _zetsu_ \- guess that's what you got for underestimating them. As the three of you stealthily followed, you noticed you were right in your earlier assumption of the base being out of York New City. The longer you followed, the farther you all went towards the outskirts of the city. Eventually, they stopped in the middle of an empty plaza, and you and Killua hid in one of the rooms with Gon in another. You shot Killua a warning glance.

"You two need to leave. It's too dangerous."

Your voice was barely audible but Killua heard it nonetheless, giving a curt nod. He was strained, you could tell, beads of sweat on his forehead, but he wasn't an idiot. He knew full well that it was time for him and Gon to get out of there, before they were noticed.

As if on cue, you heard the faint buzzing of a phone and looked down to see Nobunaga had picked it up. It was hard to hear from this distance. Who was he talking to? Your brother? Another Troupe member?

His eyes shot up to your hiding place, and in an instant you and Killua were blocked in by Phinks.

There was no time to waste - you needed to get these kids out of here. Weaponizing your shadow, you had prepared for a full-frontal attack on Phinks, ignoring the widening of his lips.

 _"_ Oh no you don't, [Y/n]!" The moment of hesitation from Nobunaga's voice was all they needed as Phinks struck out, his hand colliding with your head.

You were out before you hit the floor.

* * *

The car ride back to the Phantom Troupe's hideout was both tense and cramped. [Y/n], still passed out, was blindfolded, much to Killua and Gon's discomfort - both teens were much too nervous to ask _why_. Before they had put the blindfold on her, though, they had noticed the swelling in her face.

She was going to have a wicked-looking black eye.

The taller, busty woman had asked them a few questions before falling silent, leaving the duo to wait everything out. There was clearly going to be no escape, especially with [Y/n] down for the count. They may not have been friends, but it didn't sit right with Gon to leave her behind, especially since she was already injured on Killua's behalf.

Eventually, they had arrived at a decrepit building in the midst of the abandoned part of York New City. Even if they weren't held by the Troupe members, escape wouldn't have been easy. With that thought, Gon and Killua walked in without resisting, [Y/n] being carried by the man in the tracksuit who had hit her. The [h/c] woman was slung over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

Not everybody, it seemed, was in the hideout. Against their better judgement, Gon and Killua scanned the room to see if any members looked remarkably like [Y/n] to no avail. Either [Y/n] and her brother looked nothing alike, or he was gone. Or both.

Perched on a pile of rubble, tapping away at his phone, was a blond who immediately perked up at the sight of them.

"Ah, you found Danchou's sister again! We should probably make sure she doesn't escape again!"

With that said, another man, almost shorter than Gon, had grumbled something under his breath and drew out rope to tie up [Y/n]. While that was happening, the samurai explained why they had brought the other two kids back, and Gon found his eyes wondering over the rest of the members.

"Oh!"

The moment Gon exclaimed he shut himself up, realizing his mistake, but it was too late as he aggressively avoided eye contact with Hisoka. The samurai perked up.

"See anybody you know?"

Thankfully, Killua was here to save the day as he pointed out another person they recognized, the girl that Gon arm-wrestled. At this time, a loud groan permeated throughout the hideout, all eyes swiveling towards the previously knocked out woman.

". . . I swear to fucking god if somebody doesn't take this blindfold off _right now_ I'm going to murder everybody in this stupid garage band."

Well, [Y/n] was awake. Hopefully, the three could just make it out in one piece, now.


	11. Tried So Hard . . . But Didn't Get Really Far

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You're put in a compromising position, but you'll pull through. As the great Edward Elric once said: If you can't find a door, make your own.

You were unamused in waking up blindfolded, but after a brief argument and then a hasty agreement, you were gifted your vision again.

Unfortunately, you were still bound, but you figured it was a good start. Machi had reasoned with you that as long as you didn't try to escape, the two kids wouldn't die. The moment you tried to escape, the Troupe would kill Gon and Killua, and that wasn't something you really wanted to risk. Besides, you didn't _want_ to escape. Not now, anyways. After all, you were here to get that stupid book, and you were _not_ leaving without it. 

Watching Gon get his ass beat over and over at arm-wrestling was proving to be boring, and so instead you busied yourself with looking over all of the Phantom Troupe members. There was one you didn't recognize, a man dressed like some sort of crackhead clown. Like Shizuku, he was probably new.

As if sensing your gaze on him, he looked up from the cards he was shuffling, golden eyes twinkling in amusement. You promptly looked away.

Something about that man struck a nerve in you, and _not_ in a good way.

The other thing you noticed was the lack of Uvogin, causing confusion. It's not like he could hang anywhere else, so why wasn't he _here_? You asked as much.

Shalnark, who was sitting by you, dimmed a bit. ". . . He went off to fight the chain user. He hasn't been back since."

You snorted. "Probably out celebrating and drinking, or something." Even as you said that, though, it didn't feel right. If there was one thing Uvogin was, it was punctual. Contrary to his personality, he despised making people wait and despised waiting. For him to not come back after his fight was bizarre.

Technically speaking, you were the last one to have seen him before he had met up with the chain user. He had been pretty riled up, but that wouldn't get in the way of his fighting. Uvogin was the _strongest_ Troupe member physically, for Christ's sake! He wouldn't have fallen at the hands of some random bastard.

 _But if that was the case... He wouldn't have been caught in the first place. Somehow, that chain user had a way to subdue and_ bruise _Uvogin._

You didn't like the thought of that.

Shalnark didn't respond to your own theory of Uvogin celebrating, and instead of striking up more conversation you allowed your eyes to fall on Gon and Killua again, thoughts turning inwards. You had reached _your_ goal - the Phantom Troupe hideout. You weren't budging until you got that God-forsaken book, but...

Well, honestly, a part of you felt _guilty_ for getting the two kids into this situation. You had a weird immunity for the time being, off-limits until Chrollo came back and signed your death sentence. Neither Gon nor Killua were that lucky, though.

 _Since when did_ I _have the capacity to feel remorse of any kind...?_

Maybe it's because you had used them? No - you even tried to warn them to leave. You were just a couple seconds too late!

Annoyingly enough, that inner voice spoke up again. _If you_ really _cared, you wouldn't have let them go in the first place. It's your fault for letting them carry out this stupid plan._

Well, shit.

_SLAM._

Blinking, you saw in enjoyment that Gon had actually won against Nobunaga, slamming his arm down against the rock. That victory was short-lasting, though. Moments after, Feitan had pulled Gon's arm behind his back, shoving him forward on the table - when Killua took a step forward, a playing card was held to his neck, the jester keeping him in place.

At that same moment you had easily broken free of the frayed rope, trying to burst forward only for Shalnark to shove you to the ground face first with him on top of you, effectively pinning you. Your cheek was smooshed against the dirty concrete, both arms twisted behind your back and Shalnark's legs on either side of you. You tried to struggle, but it was no use - Shalnark was not budging.

"Don't you dare lay a fucking _finger_ on them, Feitan, or I will rip you to pieces myself." While you voice was somebody muffled, the words and intent were both clear as Feitan's eyes slid over to your restrained form.

"What happened to playing nice?"

This came from Shalnark, who went ignored.

Surprisingly enough, Nobunaga was on your side, demanding for Feitan to let them go. After a moment, you heard a quiet 'tsk' before Feitan pushed himself away, mumbling in another language underneath his breath. When you saw that Feitan wasn't going to try anything, you had relaxed under Shalnark's grip, a slight sigh escaping you.

"You can get off now."

You felt Shalnark's grip on your arms tighten for a moment. "I don't know - I sort of like this position." His voice was friendly and teasing, and you couldn't help but flush lightly.

_I'm going to fucking murder this man._

Meanwhile, Nobunaga was over there declaring his intentions for Gon and Killua to join the Phantom Troupe, something you found laughable. You could sense their hatred - personal or not, they would never join the Phantom Troupe, and Nobunaga was blind for not seeing that.

Machi, like you, was entirely unconvinced. "Then you get to babysit them." You couldn't see her, but you could feel her gaze fall on you. "While you're at it, you can watch Danchou's sister. She won't leave those two kids behind."

As much as you hated the assumption that you were growing soft, she was right - you wouldn't leave Gon and Killua.

Finally, Shalnark was getting off you before standing up. His grip on your arms never loosened, yanking you up and causing you to stumble for a short moment.

As you and your fellow hostages were taken to a more enclosed room, Shalnark gave you a cordial smile before shoving you in and leaving. All that was left was Nobunaga to watch over the three of you.

A mistake, really.

As Nobunaga began to speak, declaring none of you would be able to get away, you examined your surroundings. Normally, you'd say it was unwise to have only Nobunaga watch over you - he was easy to thwart, and thanks to your _hatsu_ , you had a much bigger advantage. His thing was close range - you excelled in all ranges, so long as you had shadows to manipulate. In any other circumstance, you'd escape in an instant, but Gon and Killua changed the entire game. If you were to escape without them... Well, actually, Nobunaga might not kill them. He seemed adamant on keeping them alive, but the other members wouldn't be so lenient.

Sitting down, purposely facing your back to Nobunaga, you looked up at the two kids. You had a plan - or, well, the makings of one. 

"Wanna play Rock-Paper-Scissors?"

Neither teen looked too keen on your idea, but nonetheless they somberly sat down, neither really into the game you had proposed. Clearly, they were also focusing on escape.

Gon was clearly the master - you were starting to get irritated on your amount of losses when he had started to speak. "What Zepile had taught us . . . The heating, the opening, and then...?"

The sudden conversation, as well as the weird topic, had you falter. You had no clue what Gon was talking about, or who Zepile was; likewise, Killua knew but clearly didn't care right now.

"I could be the bait."

Your head jerked over to Killua, eyebrows raised. "Don't be an idiot," you chided. "There's one door, and no windows. Nobunaga isn't going to let you through, you'd just be wasting your life."

Killua glared at you, standing up. "We'll never know unless we try!"

This kid was going to ruin your plan and give you an aneurysm. "Sit _down_ ," you hissed in reply through gritted teeth. "And pay attention to me."

You couldn't say more as Nobunaga would hear everything, but Killua stopped and regarded you carefully, realizing that you _did_ have some sort of plan in the works. Thank the gods he was more rational - if it were Gon instead of him, you weren't sure you would have gotten through to him. After a moment, Killua hesitantly sat back down, and you relaxed.

"Play Rock-Paper-Scissors with us. Please."

The three of you continued as you struck up more conversation. "Have you kids used _gyo_ to see things in your eyes?" You said this right as you had played paper, using your _nen_ to spell words and hover above your open hand. Immediately, they both had started, seeing your words. You continued to speak.

"There's this older manga called _Fullmetal Alchemist_. The main character - Edward Elric - always has this saying. 'If you can't find a door, make your own'. You get me?"

_I'll distract Nobunaga. I'm the highest priority - if we all scatter through the walls, he'll chase me, and you two leave without me._

They stared down the words hovering over your hand - thankfully, with your back turned to Nobunaga, the ilaido master couldn't see anything.

Immediately, Gon brightened up. "I remember! It's called the side breach!"

Uh, what?

Killua lit up too, both kids standing up. Realizing they were going to do this _now_ , you stood up too. You weren't sure why this 'side breach' got them so excited, but as long as they went for your plan, you were sure everything would turn out fine.

Nobunaga could sense your intent and had stood up as well, the earlier levity gone. "Even you, [Y/n]... If any of you step into my range, I'll cut you down."

You grinned. "Don't worry, old man - none of us plan on dying, yet."

All at once, you all had burst into action - Killua going left, Gon going right, and you going straight down, breaking through the floor and landing jarringly onto the floor below. Usually, you would have immediately slipped into the shadows - your goal wasn't to escape, though. It was to distract. You waited for a moment, expecting Nobunaga to jump down the hole.

. . . Only for him to not appear. You could feel him instead go to the right, and your eyes widened in realization that he wasn't going to go after you.

He was aiming for Gon.

_Shit shit shit!_

You jumped and pulled yourself up through the hole; unsurprisingly, nobody was there. 

"Killua, are you here?! We can fight him together!"

You nearly tripped over a loose rock out of mere shock alone as Gon's voice echoed throughout the building.

_That brat... That wasn't the plan! What the hell is he thinking?!_

You burst into the hallway the same time Nobunaga did, the two of you staring each other down for a moment. Slowly, Nobunaga brought out his nodachi.

"[Y/n]... You may be Danchou's little sister, but I won't let you leave."

Dramatically, your hand fluttered up to your chest. "Why, you'd really kill me? That's cold, Nobu. Even for you."

Nobunaga wasn't amused. "Not kill. But maim?"

You took a step forward and he tensed. You could clearly see the vein sticking out of his forehead in irritation, even in the dark, and you had to suppress a snicker as you slowly raised your hands in the air in front of you.

"Then I give up."

For a moment, he floundered, clearly not expecting you to give up. You continued speaking, calm as ever. "Those two kids are gone by now, and my priority was getting them out. If me giving up stalls you longer and gives them proper time to escape, then I'll do it."

"Damn it...!" Nobunaga sheathed his nodachi, cursing. "You're not going to get another chance to escape again. Why are you offering yourself up to save two kids?"

A good question - you were still pretty on-the-fence about retrieving _Monochopsis_ through your brother, but desperate times call for desperate measures. "I have business with Chrollo," you finally stated after a moment, grin dying down. "I meant what I said earlier - I'm not planning on escaping this time."

Swearing once more, Nobunaga finally gave up on tracking Gon and Killua down, seeming to believe your words. As he should, considering you weren't lying.

"Come on, then, somebody else can watch you. If I have to deal with you anymore tonight, I'm going to really lose it."

Snorting, you followed him and opted to say nothing else. Your mission was accomplished: Gon and Killua have escaped.

* * *

Back in the city, Gon and Killua finally had stopped to catch their breaths, Gon immediately whipping out his phone to dial an old friend he hadn't talked to in a while. It took a few tries - on the fourth, the phone was finally picked up, and Gon immediately started talking.

"Kurapika, finally!"

 ** _"Gon?"_** The phone volume, up all the way, could be heard by Killua as well.

"We need to talk - we met the Phantom Troupe! Er, more concisely, we were captured..."

Immediately, Kurapika started to yell through the phone, causing Gon to hold it far away from him. " _ **Are you insane?! Do you know who they are?!"**_

Killua took the phone from Gon. "We thought we knew, but they're on a whole other level." The Zoldyck's voice was more controlled, and Kurapika fell silent, giving Killua more time to speak. "We managed to escape, but we had to leave somebody else behind. A girl stayed behind so we could escape."

Kurapika stayed silent a few moments longer, before speaking up, voice thoughtful. _**"This girl... Did she have [h/l], [h/c] hair and stand at about [height]?"**_

Gon ripped the phone back from Killua. "You've met [Y/n]?!"

**_"_ _No. But I know who you're talking about - we thought she might have been dead by now."_**

Gon looked over at Killua, before nodding and handing the phone back over. Killua spoke carefully. "She's alive for now, but she's positive that once the leader sees her, he'll kill her on sight."

**_"Why is she alive until then?"_ **

"We'll tell you if you let us help you fight the Troupe. We also know their location."

**_"I'm not letting you guys--"_ **

"We're going to get involved no matter what, so stop being stubborn!"

Killua, getting riled up, shoved the phone back towards Gon. "We saw one of them cry over his dead teammate. He said that he would stop at nothing to kill the chain user... I thought... We can't let people like that move freely. We want to try and stop them too. Please, Kurapika."

They couldn't hear a single thing on Kurapika's end for a moment - it was almost easy enough to imagine that he had just hung up. Finally, after a few seconds of silence, he responded.

**_"Okay. I'll call you back."_ **


	12. Family Reunions Suck

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You get what is probably the worst babysitter to have ever existed. On top of that, you happen to run into your older brother, who somehow is not dead.

True to his word, Nobunaga had swiftly put somebody else in charge, clearly done with babysitting for the night. This person got to be Pakunoda and Machi - which made sense, considering both women knew you well.

"I'm not tying you up, but don't try to escape. I really don't need to add your runaway tendencies to the list of our problems." This came from an unamused Machi, the pink-haired kunoichi not pleased with her task. You leaned back against a slab of concrete.

"I said I'm not running, right? Do you really think I'd go back on my word?"

"Yes, actually, considering how often you've done it already."

Machi's response was enough to get you to shut up for a moment, opting for no response until you looked over at the creepy jester from before. "So who's that clown?"

Both women looked over, but Pakunoda answered, disdain in her voice. "Hisoka. Stay away from him, [Y/n]." That was _super_ helpful. "He replaced Omokage."

You cringed. "Man... Seems the number four spot is cursed. Can't tell if Hisoka is better or worse than that puppet show freak."

Before you all could carry on with whatever meaningless conversation you were going to attempt, Phinks came back into the room, a cell phone in his hand. Everybody in the room looked over, waiting for him to speak.

"A message from Danchou," Phinks called out. "The plan is still on for tonight. Boss says to go all out. Also," his eyes wandered over to you, "He says that he doesn't want the kid leaving the base at all. He'll deal with her when we get back."

 _Excuse me... Did he say_ deal _with me?! It sounds like Chrollo really is pissed... And I'm not a kid! I'm an adult now!_

The demand seemed to exasperate everybody, nobody wanting to really have to watch over you. Finally, a voice spoke up, a honeyed one you weren't expecting.

"I'll do it~."

All eyes swiveled towards Hisoka, who was still shuffling cards in the corner. Everybody else looked uneasy - if Pakunoda's earlier warning was anything to go by, you could understood why. And that is _exactly_ why you jumped at the chance, standing up before anybody else could protest. "I'll take it, you all go have fun now, bye bye!"

If anybody wanted to protest, nobody did, the Troupe members leaving the room one by one. They couldn't waste time, they had an auction to rob, and it was clear nobody wanted to team up and deal with Hisoka anyways. In the end, only Machi stayed behind. She was short, especially compared to Hisoka, but it didn't stop the icy glare that she directed towards him. Even icier was her voice, the tone threatening.

" _Don't_ try anything funny."

With that, she was gone, leaving you and the jester by yourselves.

Thankfully, the room was spacious, and you made it a point to distance yourself far from Hisoka, sitting across the room. He was amused, but didn't attempt to come closer; a wise move on his part. You wouldn't hesitate to skewer him with a shadow if he tried anything, consequences be damned. 

"So you're really the boss's sister?"

The way Hisoka was looking at you made you feel uncomfortable, and you fixed him with your best glare. It had an adverse reaction - if anything, it looked like it made the clown _more_ excited. Bristling, you countered a question with one of your own. "Everybody else keeps avoiding me when I ask, but where's Uvogin? There's no way he was killed."

Hisoka's grin dropped into a more disinterested and dismissive glance. "He was. Number 11 is no more."

 _Number 11 is no more_.

You gritted your teeth, fists clenching. "You're lying. There's no way somebody could have taken him down!"

Immune to your childish tantrum, Hisoka brought out his cards again, shuffling them. "Believe what you want, but Uvogin _is_ dead. The chain user killed him."

_"I'm going to go tear that wretched chain user apart and make him pay!"_

_"A hug before you go kick some ass, then?"_

_"Stop treating me like a kid, I'm an adult now!"_

_"You'll always be like my kid sister. Especially since you're still so fucking short."_

"Oh my. Are you crying?"

Hisoka's voice jarred you back into reality and you hastily wiped at your eyes, avoiding eye contact with him. "Shut the fuck up, it's none of your business."

In an instant Hisoka was leaning over you, his face uncomfortably near your own. In retaliation you smacked him, not giving him enough time to dodge as his head yanked back. Neither of you had time to use _nen_ , but even without _ko_ your hits could be strong, as proven by the swelling mark on Hisoka's cheek.

"Stay the _fuck_ away from me."

You weren't sure what you had been expecting. Anger, shock, dismissiveness, even. What you _hadn't_ been expecting, however, was for Hisoka to start _laughing_. Despite his eerie appearance, his laugh sounded completely normal; honestly, you would have expected some weird witch cackle from him. As he laughed, you could feel his bloodlust ooze out of him, and you stood up in an instant, fight or flight instincts rearing up.

When his laughter died down, golden eyes fixed themselves on you, a stretched grin still on his face. "Oh, you're _nothing_ like the boss. You were an unexpected addition... But I can see you'll be _fun_ to play with."

Yeah, no. No, no, no. 

"Play with _this_ , you psychopath!" Using your _nen_ , you shot a shadow spike out, aiming for Hisoka's stomach. He dodged, and gracefully at that, but it was only a distraction as you dived into the shadows, already making your escape. Despite Hisoka's orders to keep you there, you didn't sense him following you. Good.

Because, for the first time in a _long_ time you had felt genuine fear.

That stupid clown made _you_ feel _fear_.

After reassuring yourself that you were far enough from the base and, consequently, Hisoka, you collapsed against the side of a dilapidated building. Your heart was pounding, and soon enough that fear you had previously felt morphed into sheer rage at the fact that somebody had the _audacity_ to toy with you like that. And what did he mean _play_ with?! You didn't care if Chrollo would be pissed at you for killing somebody else in the Phantom Troupe, you wanted nothing more than to gut Hisoka like a fish.

Taking a couple of deep breaths, you made yourself focus on your surroundings. In the distance, you could hear a cacophony of screams and gunfire, smoke billowing up in the air. No doubt, your brother's work. Most of that sound was drowned out, though, by the fighting you you could hear going on in the building you were leaning against. It sounded fast paced and violent, but you found yourself not really caring enough to check in.

"Okay, so clearly staying at the hideout isn't an option. If I run into any other Troupe members, they're going to think that I ran off again no matter what I say..."

Your options weren't vast. Pulling out your phone, you resisted the urge to smash it against the ground when you realized that it was _still_ dead. A moment of contemplation later, you started to use _shu_ , wondering if it would work.

_Ding!_

You nearly dropped your phone in excitement as the loading screen popped up. The battery was still on the verge of dying, but your _nen_ gave it the small boost it needed. You wasted no time in pulling up your contacts to send a quick text to the only person in there.

**To: Shalnark**   
**From: [Y/n]**

**[10:38 PM]:** hey, i'm not at the base because hisoka is a fuckin weirdo! lmk when you guys are back or something, i'll head back then.

Despite the chaos, Shalnark responded almost immediately.

**To: [Y/n]**   
**From: Shalnark**

**[10:39 PM]:** Where are you? I'll come get you :)

Okay, that was actually pretty nice. Readying yourself to respond, you looked around to try and figure out where exactly in the city you were, only to be startled as the doors to the building you were against flung open. You sunk into the shadows immediately only to see two men walk proudly out of the building. The smaller and much older of the two glanced in your direction - no, he was looking _at_ you. How did he notice you?!

He said nothing as he continued to walk, turning his gaze back forwards.

_Somebody is still in there???_

Staying in the shadows, you darted into the building before materializing again, eyes scanning the room to see who had died. For a moment, you didn't see anybody, but then you looked back into the center of the room. Lying on the floor, complaining, was a person you knew _all_ too well as you froze, feeling all of the blood leave your face.

At the same time you noticed him, he had noticed you. Sitting up, inquisitive gray eyes met your own, lips quirking upwards in amusement.

"[Y/n]. Long time, no see."

". . . Yeah. Long time, no see . . . Fuckwit."


	13. The Best Sibling Bonding is OBVIOUSLY Murder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Chrollo have a meaningful conversation before he ruins it by asking you how you want to die. Gotta love family, right?

"' _Fuckwit'?_ It's nice to see your attitude hasn't changed."

Frozen to your spot, you could only stare at your brother in awe as he stood up, pulling out his phone. You weren't sure who he was calling, but his words were enough.

"Continue on with the plan. I have [Y/n]."

Whoever Chrollo was talking to confirmed something before he hung up the phone, and you took a moment to take your brother's appearance in. It had been a couple of years, but he didn't change much. Of course, right now he was bloodied up and his hair was all messy, but he was still the same Chrollo that had raised you and looked after you in Meteor City.

And, weirdly enough, he didn't seem angry at all.

Snapping you out of your thoughts, Chrollo started to speak again, walking towards you languidly. "You're supposed to be in Meteor City. Do you _ever_ listen to orders?"

"Nope." Your response was automatic, as was your immediate defensive position when Chrollo started to move. He chuckled.

"Relax. I don't have time to deal with you right now."

Bristling in indignation, you pursed your lips. "What is _that_ supposed to mean?!" He stopped about four feet away from you, smile dropping and gray eyes piercing into you. The serious expression was enough to make you falter.

"Do you really think that I'm going to beat you or something?"

"Uh, yeah."

Chrollo sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I'm not mad at you for leaving Meteor City. Just curious as to why you would follow me when you were _so adamant_ on not joining - and I quote - my 'shitty idol group'."

Suspicious, you regarded him. "What about when I killed the old number eight?"

Chrollo shrugged. "He would have been killed by somebody else for putting his hands on you when he shouldn't have. You did well to kill him."

"Oh."

You filtered through your thoughts, trying to figure out why else he might be mad at you. ". . . What about me ruining the auction?"

"That wasn't you, but the chain user who killed Uvogin."

" _Oh._ "

Blinking owlishly, you gathered your bearings. "So you're... Not... Mad? You're not going to, like, kill me or anything?"

"No. I'm not mad at you, [Y/n]."

At his confession you collapsed into a sitting position on the floor, a pout growing on your lips. None of this was going as planned! You were supposed to meet with Chrollo, both of you angry at each other, and fight it out! He wasn't supposed to be completely calm and as cool as a cucumber!

"Are _you_ mad?"

You glared up at him. " _Yes_ I am! You left me behind in that dump of a city and then had the audacity to tell me to stay there! Not to mention you now have some fashion-illiterate, asshole clown in the group who literally said that he wants to play with me! Like, what the hell does that even _mean_?! And - And you let Uvogin die! He was family too, wasn't he?! And now -- ?!"

Chrollo cut you off, crouching down to your height and pulling you into a clumsy hug. You brother wasn't one for affection - or really, any positive emotions outside of amusement, you were sure. However, even just the principle of the hug was enough to get you to relax as you started to cry like a toddler throwing a tantrum.

"You fucking - you idiot!" You choked out, clutching onto him tightly. "I missed you . . . I'm so mad you left!"

Chrollo sighed, and waited for you to calm down before he pulled away, ruffling your hair. "Then join the Phantom Troupe. Travel with us, and I won't leave you behind again."

Wiping viciously at your eyes, you sniffled. You felt like a four-year-old instead of the adult that you were, but you couldn't help the outburst of feelings. "Really? I can still join your after-school club?"

Your older brother let out a shaky exhale as if he was trying to hold in laughter. Standing up, Chrollo tilted his head downwards to look at you. "You'll have to wait until after our current heist, but after that, yes, you can become a Spider."

Standing up yourself, you nodded sharply, a wobbly smile making its way onto your face.

"Count me in then, big bro!"

Chrollo's smile was barely noticeable as he withdrew his _hatsu_ , _Bandit's Secret_. "Then, there's just one thing left to do. Say, [Y/n] . . . how do you want to die?"

* * *

_The Phantom Troupe is dead._

Kurapika couldn't believe those words - rushing to where the supposed leader was, though, the truth made him feel desolate. His _revenge_... Somebody else had enacted it.

"This was the leader," one of the mafioso had led Kurapika to the body, gesturing towards the mutilated, raven-haired man. "Pretty young to be the leader of the notorious Phantom Troupe... And there's one more body, although we've confirmed she's not a Troupe member."

Kurapika felt his heart drop at those words, but allowed himself to be led to the other body. Lying crudely on the floor was a headless body, an arm barely attached. The head of the body was a few feet away, [h/c] hair matted with blood. The eyes were gouged out, bringing terrible memories that the blond desperately shoved down.

"She wasn't a Troupe member," Kurapika confirmed, eyes burning red behind his contacts. "Her name was [Y/n], and she was taken as a hostage by the Troupe a couple days ago."

Gon and Killua's friend... Did they know? Kurapika didn't want to have to explain to them that their friend was found dead, _decapitated_ and _eyeless_ of all things, but... They deserved to know.

They even said that she believed the leader would kill her and nobody else in the Troupe. Why was she targeted by the leader in particular? Gon and Killua said they would tell Kurapika her connection... But now it was too late. Kurapika had taken too long to try and save her, too focused on his revenge for his fallen brethren.

The mafioso beside Kurapika spoke up, voice solemn. "I thought the leader was young, but she's even younger. Wouldn't be surprised if she wasn't even an adult, yet. Whatever she did to piss the Phantom Troupe off... It's obvious her death was brutalized."

Kurapika's fists clenched as he turned around on his heels, trying to contain his rage. The Phantom Troupe had been taken down, but not without casualties. Baise, Tocino, Ivlenkov, Dalzollene, and now [Y/n]....

The Phantom Troupe had been taken down, but at what _cost?_

The next day, Kurapika had found himself worn down to the bone, lethargic. If it weren't for Gon and Killua's text for Kurapika to meet them in the park, he wouldn't have gone. They didn't know yet, though, and Kurapika couldn't keep them in the dark.

Their meeting at the park had been lighthearted and cheery, yet the entire time, the thought of [Y/n]'s death loomed gloomily over his head. When it was suggested they move elsewhere, Kurapika had agreed to call Leorio, and soon, the four had met up in Kurapika's hotel room to go over the most recent events.

"With more than half of the Troupe gone, we should strike the rest and save [Y/n]!" Gon exclaimed, Leorio nearly dropping his phone.

"You guys left [Y/n] behind?!"

"She told us to!"

Seeing Killua and Leorio butt heads, Kurapika's smile died down, and his lips thinned at the news he was about to deliver.

"Kurapika?"

Gon was the first to notice something was off, and Kurapika closed his eyes to try and keep his composure before breaking the news to the trio. "[Y/n]... She was found dead by the leader of the Phantom Troupe last night. It looked like she had lost in a fight against him."

For a moment, everybody was silent, before Gon stood up, brown eyes determined and angry. "No way! [Y/n] can't be dead!"

Killua, typing away on his phone, had brought up the crime scene photos to show Gon as proof. When Gon had seen how mutilated [Y/n]'s body was, he started to tear up angrily. "He was her family... How could he do that?!"

Kurapika blinked. "What?"

Killua spoke for Gon, a hand on the other 13-year-old's shoulder. "[Y/n] told us that the leader of the Phantom Troupe was her older brother, and that she was pretty sure that he wanted to be the one to kill her."

Once again, rage encompassed Kurapika. He had known the Phantom Troupe to be brutal, but for the leader to kill his younger sister and what was possibly his only family?! Leorio and Gon seemed to be taking the news the hardest; especially Gon.

"We have to take down the rest of the Phantom Troupe... For [Y/n], too. She sacrificed herself to get us out of there... And now...!"

Kurapika's expression remained solemn. Going after the Troupe would be dangerous, even with half of them dead, but Kurapika knew Gon well. There was no convincing the teen otherwise when his mind was made up, but before Kurapika could agree to their help, he felt his phone buzz.

**From: UNKNOWN**   
**To: Kurapika**

**[1:13pm]:** The bodies are fake ♥♢

Well, shit. This changed everything.


	14. A Group of Morons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chrollo tries to tell everybody's fortunes, but some of you guys are just lowkey dumb. Also, everybody thinks you're dead, so that's cool, you guess.

Sitting next to Pakunoda in the Phantom Troupe hideout, you watched in curiosity as your older brother started to tell the fortunes of everybody. After Chrollo's little theatrics, he, with the help of Kortopi, had made a fake body of you, dead. You even got to choose how gruesome you wanted it to look!

A bit morbid, to be excited over your own death like that, but it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

"[Y/n], Phinks, Feitan." Hearing your brother's voice, you looked up to see him writing. "I need your guys' information."

"I don't know my blood type," you and Phinks said immediately, with Feitan tacking on that he didn't know his birthday.

["Excuse me?"](https://i.ibb.co/F4pyX7W/007.jpg)

Your brother looked somewhat baffled, before going back to everybody else's fortunes, leaving you three and Kortopi out of the mix. In your defense, when would you ever need to know your blood type? That wasn't something normal people just went around knowing! Turning to your little group of outcasts, you huffed, before remembering something. Digging through your pockets, you withdrew the coin you had stolen from Phinks a while ago, when you two first met.

"Oi, that's where it went!" The blond quickly caught the coin you tossed to him, pocketing it himself.

Feitan watched the scene in masked confusion. "You stole it?" You shrugged, watching as Pakunoda read her own fortune. It was pretty obvious you did, but you weren't really feeling like having a conversation with Feitan at the moment. Instead, you were more focused as Hisoka's facial expression dropped upon reading his own fortune.

_Good, I hope this means he's going to fucking die._

Pakunoda asked to see the fortune, silently answering your inquisitive thoughts as she read the fortune and ignored Hisoka's own warning. Upon seeing it, the taller blonde had gasped.

"Hisoka . . . !"

Huh — maybe things were a bit more convoluted than you had been expecting.

* * *

"The bodies are fake... Do you think that means [Y/n] is still alive?"

Killua was puzzled over Hisoka's warning, and Kurapika sighed, not even bothering with shooting a response back at the 29-year-old. "I don't know," Kurapika truthfully answered. "It's possible that all of the bodies except for hers was fake. It's possible hers was also fake, but in that case, how and _why_ is she still alive?"

Gon, Killua, and Leorio all seemed to trust [Y/n], but Kurapika wasn't entirely sure. Despite their own trust in her, Kurapika couldn't help but grow more and more suspicious. It didn't help that she was the sister of the Phantom Troupe's leader. What if she was on their side all along and was just playing Kurapika's more naïve friends like a fiddle?

No, that's not it. Gon and Leorio _may_ have fallen for it, but Killua would have picked up on it in an instant. This meant that, unfortunately, either [Y/n] was still a hostage or was dead. It was even possible that she had switched sides. Kurapika had to take everything into consideration; this was a dangerous game, and it was bad enough when only himself was involved. He didn't want to risk hurting his friends, as well.

His phone ringing again, this time in the form of a call, Kurapika picked it up. "Melody?"

On the other end of the phone, his colleague, Melody, started to talk. "The mafia has rescinded the rewards and hits on the remaining Phantom Troupe members. They found out that they're from Meteor City..."

"What?!"

"I'm sorry, Kurapika... The auction is going on as normal."

". . . I see. Thank you."

The conversation ended as quickly as it came, and Kurapika was quick to relay the new information to his friends. Gon and Killua knew little about Meteor City, but Leorio knew enough about it.

While Kurapika was contemplating what to do next, Killua pulled Gon aside to try and convince the teen otherwise in pursuing the Phantom Troupe.

"Our first objective is _Greed Island_ , remember?!"

Gon nodded, a sheepish smile on his face. "Don't worry, I have a plan with 70% chance of success! Er... Maybe 60%... But it doesn't matter! I want to help Kurapika, and save [Y/n]!" 

* * *

Chrollo had figured out the problem — after asking Hisoka a series of questions, Chrollo had determined that Hisoka was under the chain user's _nen_ and couldn't share any information about him. As much hassle as you gave your brother, he _was_ smart — there was no denying it. However, it still left many questions unanswered.

"Danchou... What do we do now? Do we stay? Or leave?"

All eyes turned towards Chrollo as he contemplated seriously. If the Troupe were to leave back, five more would die... Would you, too, die? Considering you didn't have your fortune, you couldn't be sure.

"We stay," Chrollo decided. "We move in groups — nobody acts individually. Pakunoda, Machi, and Shizuku; you three stay together. Kortopi, Feitan, Phinks, and [Y/n]; then Hisoka, Franklin, and Bonelenov. Nobunaga and Shalnark, you two stay with me."

You looked at the group you were paired with. "Great. It's the Fortune Rejects Squad."

Machi spoke up, blue eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "We can't forget that those kids know of this place... Even if they aren't related to the chain user, I don't like it."

Nobunaga perked up as well. "Oh, yeah! Danchou, I found these kids that would be great recruits, I'm sure we can convince them!"

Nobunaga's optimistic declaration made you snort, shaking your head. "No offense, but I'm certain those kids would rather die than join the Phantom Troupe."

_Although they do know the base... They aren't stupid enough to come back for me, right? . . . Right?_

Chrollo thought about it as Nobunaga explained the situation. "I see... They do sound interesting, but I agree with my little sister. They don't seem privy to join the Troupe."

"I can bring them here and you can observe them!"

Machi immediately objected. "I disagree, Danchou! We shouldn't!"

"Is it your intuition?"

"Well, yeah . . . "

"I know we can rely on your intuition. It's not impossible those kids may be important. To be safe, Kortopi, can you increase ten more towers to place around the area?"

Sitting on the rock and staying out of the conversation for the most part, Kortopi nodded. "Yes. I can create another 50 if needed, and all of my copies act as _en_. If anybody enters the proximity of the buildings, I'll know."

With that said, Kortopi went to go do just that, with you and Phinks being forced to go out with him in order to stick together. Feitan was allowed to stay inside. Lucky bastard.

Grimacing as cold rain hit your skin, you wrapped your arms around yourself in an attempt to keep warm, constantly shifting your weight from one foot to another.

"Uh, how long do you think this is going to take?" Kortopi didn't look over at your question.

"Each copy will take a few minutes because of size... And for ten copies... Probably around 45 to 50 minutes."

You nearly fell over. "I'm supposed to be in this cold ass rain for an hour?!"

Phinks looked down at you and immediately shrugged off his track jacket, revealing a thin white tank top underneath. "If this gets you to shut up and stop complaining, then take this."

"Uh, won't you get cold?"

The look you received made you feel like that was a stupid question, and so you took the jacket and immediately slipped it on and zipped it up. Thanks to the size, the jacket pretty much fell just before your knees, the sleeves swallowing up your arms. You felt like a little kid playing dress-up, honestly, not to mention that it was much warmer than you had anticipated.

"Huh. This is actually a lot better than I thought. How do I look?" Flashing a peace sign at Phinks — not that it could be seen since the sleeve hid away your hand — you grinned. Phinks looked away in a hurry, mumbling something under his breath and turning away from you so you couldn't see his face. "Oh — rude, much?!"

Kortopi looked up over at you as he had finished his third building. "[Y/n], you can go inside if you're too cold. Phinks and I should be okay out here."

You kicked a rock, letting out an exasperated sigh. "Nah, I'll be fine. Besides, the less time I spend around that walking headache of a clown, the better. He creeps me the fuck out."

Phinks tilted his head to the side. "Hisoka?"

"Uh, yeah, are there any other clowns in the Phantom Troupe???"

You could tell you were getting on Phinks' nerves with your sass, especially as he glared down at you. A few moments later, his glare morphed into a more quizzical look. "Wait, didn't you stay behind with Hisoka earlier? What happened?"

There was no way you could hide the grimace that crossed your face, and immediately Phinks was in front of you with a tight grip on your shoulders, shaking you back and forth like a ragdoll. Even Kortopi stopped and looked over — probably concern, not that you could tell considering his face was covered by his hair.

"What happened?! I'll kill that bastard for you!"

"Uh, Phinks... I think you should stop shaking her now."

Immediately the blond let you go, and you shook your head, trying to regain your bearings. "Ugh... Now I feel dizzy..." You received no apology from Phinks, not that you had expected to. "He just got all up close and personal and said I would be fun to 'play with'. He's a creep, and if he wasn't a part of the Phantom Troupe, I would kill him immediately."

Kortopi cocked his head to the side. "You've killed Phantom Troupe members before. What's different?"

Oh, that's right — you joining the Troupe was still a secret. Laughing, you scratched at the side of your cheek. "Ah, well, actually... Chrollo's letting me join the squad once your little _Ocean's 11_ type heist is over. So it's kind of against the rules for me to kill another member."

"'Squad'...?"

Phinks did a doubletake, ignoring Kortopi's confused muttering. "Wait, you've killed Troupe members before?"

You shrugged. "The one Shizuku replaced, number eight. He didn't know how to keep his hands to himself, so he wound up without them."

Kortopi snorted, going back to copying the buildings. "You didn't just take off his hands — you pulled him apart limb by limb with your shadows. It was gross."

"It's certainly not my problem anymore."

Phinks shook his head, crossing his arms. "So why didn't you join the Troupe at first? Why wait until now?"

That was not a conversation you wanted to get into at the moment, so you offered Phinks a shrug instead.

The rest of the time, waiting and watching over Kortopi to make the buildings, the three of you talked about less important stuff. You dodged most questions about _Monochopsis_ , and Phinks filled you in a bit on his life before he joined the Phantom Troupe. The conversation was enough to keep your mind off the chill as Kortopi finished and the three of you were finally allowed to head back inside. Even underneath Phinks' jacket, you were shivering again.

When the three of you got inside, you had just joined the conversation where they were talking about the auction, discussing. Nobody really paid the three of you any attention, everybody too focused on the topic at hand.

"But why did she come to York New? For the auctions?"

You saw your brother freeze at Pakunoda and Shizuku's conversation, and you weren't the only one. Shalnark stepped forward, confused.

"Danchou?"

Chrollo sighed, eyes closing for a moment. "Pakunoda. Shizuku. Congratulations." His hand was over his mouth as he thought hard, leaving the two women in question confused. "I was stupid... Shit. If I had realized sooner, we could have tracked him down quicker... The Nostrade girl I stole the prediction ability from has another face; she collects parts of the human body."

Shalnark was the first to understand, eyebrows shooting upwards. "The Scarlet Eyes!"

Chrollo nodded once. "It wasn't by chance the chain user entered the Nostrade Clan. He knew that the mafia would have access to the underground auction, and that the Nostrade Clan would be interested in the eyes. This means our target has two objectives: getting revenge, and getting the scarlet eyes back."

Standing up, Chrollo stepped forward. You recognized that attitude: He had a plan.

"Shalnark! Were there any scarlet eyes at the auction?"

The blond in question shook his head. "I don't remember, I was on auto-pilot mode during the auction."

Thankfully, Kortopi came in clutch. "Yes. I made a copy of those."

Now all of the attention was on Chrollo as he thought carefully. "And your copies act as _en_... Can you find those copies now?"

"Yes, I just need to touch the original one."

Getting together, you were quick to realize that it wasn't just the Scarlet Eyes here — the Troupe _had_ gotten plenty of the auction goods. But when? And how? You wanted to ask about your book now, but figured it might not be the best time. Patience _wasn't_ a virtue you possessed, but you'd have to deal. Right now, there were more important matters.

"The copy is... about 2500 kilometers in that direction." Kortopi pointed east, and Chrollo was quick to pull up a map, determining that almost exactly 2500 kilometers in that direction was a hotel where the fake scarlet eyes were being held; that also meant that chain user was there.

_The guy who killed Uvo...!_

You weren't the only one enraged by this. Nobunaga stepped forward, face serious. "Danchou... Let me go there. Please."

"Okay."

You blinked, surprised. Just an hour ago, Chrollo had said nobody was to go after the chain user!

"On one condition," he continued. "I go with you. I don't want any individual movement."

Nobunaga pumped his fist in victory. "Yes! Okay!"

Chrollo turned back to the rest of you all, eyes scanning over everybody. "Paku, Machi, Shizuku. You come with us. And change of plans. Kortopi, you switch with Shalnark."

As everybody came forward, you realized that you were being excluded from the hunting party and stepped forward as well, eyebrows furrowed. "Wait, I want to come too! I, too... I want to avenge Uvogin!"

Chrollo's answer was decisive. "No."

"Why?!"

"You're not a part of the Troupe, and could be a liability. It's better for people to go on thinking you're dead for a while longer since it's unknown that you had prior associations with the Phantom Troupe." He stepped forward and ruffled your hair, causing you to swat his hand away. He gave a fond smile, before swiftly turning around. "Let's go."

Left standing there, you kicked a rock in agitation, your _nen_ causing it to rocket through the wall and leave a small hole. From beside you, Shalnark spoke up, hands in his pockets.

" _So..._ What's with the new get up?"

"Shut _up_."


End file.
